Finding Me, but Fixing you
by Mystic-Scriptures
Summary: Stephanie McGrath was tired of spending her life in the service of her mother and her twin sister and being the blame for things she was no part of. So when she finds out the secret life of her classmates Isaac Lahey, Scott McCall, and Stiles Stilinski She'll do anything to help them protect Beacon Hills, and along the way she may find a way to fix the pieces of her broken life.
1. Sporadic Oddities

So a few weeks ago, I was on spring break and binge watched Teen Wolf when this plot bunny came into my head! I hope you enjoy, and I'll try to update some of my other stories, sorry for those of you watching them.

_**Disclaimer: I don't own Teen Wolf or the adorable puppy that is Isaac Lahey or else I would pick him up and shield him away from all of the things.**_

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_~Chapter one: Sporadic Oddities~_

_The night air was cold with the autumn wind, a slight framed girl's light copper-red hair wisping out of the her braid. Her scanning her surroundings, her eyes an icy glowing blue. There was a caution that mixed with a sort of unexplained concern across the girl's soft features. After a low growl sounded behind her, she spun into a crouch, claws replacing her nails. The stance was brief, replaced by a smile with her eyes back to their bright slate blue glitter. The young woman crossed her arms-claws gone-with a smirk as she addressed the figure in front of her._

_"You need to stop sneaking up on me like that, Lahey. I could have ripped your throat out."_

_There was a light chuckle in response as the man in question pulled her into his arms, tapping a finger on her nose. "You could have tried McGrath, but you would have failed"_

_"Don't pose challenges that you can't win, Isaac." She playfully growled, pulling away slightly in order to look him in the eyes, "Just because I have control on the full moon doesn't mean I'm off edge."_

_"You mean, not on edge, right?" Isaac pulled her closer, pressing his forehead against hers, "I mean really, Steph, I thought you said you were the smart one."_

_"Get your logic right, love, if I said it that way it would have been a double negative, or at least sounded like one," Stephanie smiled, leaning against him lightly, "Come on, let's get out of here. I don't feel safe anywhere with that Kanima still around...it's already tried to kill me when he thought it was Mel."_

_Isaac, kissed Stephanie's forehead, about to say something against her skin,whatever he was going to say was interrupted by an obnoxious beeping that was getting louder_ AND LOUDER and-

I bolted out of bed, shaking as I turned my alarm off and looked through the curtain of the small window that separated my closet of a room from my sister's. I have lived in Melanie's walk in closet since it was was converted into a 'room' for me when I was 8. The room that would have been mine has been turned into a large walk-in closet for her the spoiled princess. I could see that she was still asleep, for another half an hour if I was lucky enough. I looked at her in envy as her blonde hair curled gently down her shoulders and around her face. It made her look even more beautiful than ever, the grey blue eyes peaceful with their usual cold stare hidden by her eyelids. I looked down to my own hair and wasn't sure if I was more disappointed or relieved that it was still it's natural blonde and not the silky copper tone that I saw in my dream. Which I have to admit, was the strangest one I've had yet. I mean really, me with Isaac Lahey? As if. I mean, Isaac and I barely even talked in real life, let alone my dreams. We had a few classes together and we've been paired for the odd project or two, but there wasn't really anything there. Though he seemed to give me these knowing looks whenever someone in class caught sight of one of my hidden marks and I had to lie about them. Still, nothing to warrant what I saw last night. If anything, that's what made me know I was dreaming. Okay, that and the glowing eyes...and the claws...and whatever the hell a Kanima was, so I guess the whole thing….It was just way too weird. It all felt like I was watching a scene in a movie that I don't remember acting in.

"Well, no more reading fanfiction before bed I suppose...makes you create some out of your own life," I muttered, pulling out my outfit for today out the captain's drawers to my bed.

I decided to make my outfit simple: leggings and a loose fitting flannel with a cream laced cami to match over my brown leather, motorcycle boots. It was relaxed and comfortable, which was something I needed after this weekend's torment, hell, before I'll have to go through the morning after my sister wakes up. Sure enough, I had just finished washing my face and putting on a simple layer of concealer to hide the bags under my eyes with some eyeliner and throwing a beanie over my freshly mousse-tousled waves when I heard Melanie pounding on the door. Luckily I had long sleeves on so I didn't have to cover my arms today. Sighing, I resigned myself to how I looked, knowing that if I didn't open the door within the next few minutes, then I would have both Melanie and my mother on me in a matter of seconds. Grabbing my duffel of supplies with a sigh, I opened the door with a blank expression on my face.

"Good morning to you too, Mel." I smiled tightly, my shoulder dragging behind me as she pushed her way through.

"Don't even try to talk to me before I've made myself look remotely human." She snapped, pouting at her reflection, and wrinkling her nose at her hair. "Unlike some of us, I put some effort into looking nice for school. I mean seriously, throwing on a pair of boots and a beanie over your pajamas doesn't make it an outfit."

I opened my mouth to reply when my mom came down the stairs, a frown on her face when she saw me, "Stephanie Anne, please tell me that you only had your shoes on because you were going to take out the trash as were were suppose to do last night before getting dressed for school."

I clamped my eyes shut, embarrassed that I forgot."Yes, Ma'am. I'll go do that right now, Ma'am." I bowed my head before turning around and moving down the hall to get the garbage "Sorry, Ma'am."

"Yes you will, and you damn well better be sorry," She said, her gaze stoney. As I turned the corner I heard her speaking to my sister, "I swear, Melly, you need to teach her how to dress and behave herself."

My sister made blew some hair between her lips, "Trust me, it wouldn't improve much; her friends are all like that. Assuming she has any, I mean."

I tried to ignore the typical strand of comments as I went to get the trash and recyclables from their bins in the kitchen and put them in the sidewalk cans. I checked the mail, knowing that it most likely wouldn't be there, and took a few deep breaths to compose myself before going to the door. Once I got back in, I set up my sister's breakfast of an orange and a bowl of oatmeal, pouring the oats with the needed water, cream and maple syrup that she likes before putting the bowl in the microwave. I set set up the time so that all she had to do was hit the start button when she was ready. Sneaking an apple into the folds of my shirt, I went down the stairs, wishing my dad hadn't run away to Chicago without me.

He had always been there to stick up for me when I was going through this as a child. Then he left when I was ten, tired of my mother's treatment of her family and unable to deal with the loss of my brother Joshua two years prior to that. I was blamed for both: I wasn't a good enough daughter. Though I know he never thought that, it still hurt whenever she brought it up. I like to think that he would have taken me with him if Mother didn't tell him that she needed me to take care of her and Melonie. And by take care of, I mean deal with the abuse of. After all, my mother only wanted one daughter and one son. Instead she had twin daughters and son, who didn't live to see his second birthday. I got blamed for that, too. Another thing that I knew to be false, but still was hurt by. I mean after seventeen years, I've learned that no matter what the case, Mother's precious little Melly could never do wrong. I still to this day, wish that it was Joshua who was Mel's twin and I died, at least then he would have been loved and cared for.

When I got back to the room, Melanie was still in the shower and my mom was back in her room, getting ready for work at the Beacon Hills Country Club. She was the pilates and yoga instructor there and was really well off due to getting tipped really well. Though that wouldn't be evident unless you looked at her or my sister. I didn't see a dime of it, hell, I wasn't even allowed to go there for her lessons. _Wouldn't want to risk the potential embarrassment or damage I would give to her reputation just by walking through the doors._

I shook my head, trying to ignore the daily mantras of the McGrath family regarding their whipping girl. I decided to appease them both by changing out of my outfit. I changed out of the blue and cream flannel and into a grey striped sweater that had a stripe of a crocheted lace pattern down the back, over pair of simple lavender skinny jeans that Melanie said were 'too big' for her. I only got them because she insisted that she couldn't be seen returning them without people thinking she had an eating disorder. I mean she does, but heaven forbid someone finds out about her super binge Saturdays and purge-itopia Sundays. I swear I was the only normal one in the family when it comes to my body. It was one of the things I was punished for. I didn't hate myself enough, so they did it for me, or at least that's what they tell themselves.

I sighed, as I pinched at my stomach where the sweater thankfully flowed over the pouch of skin and fat, looking down in defeat at the size six jeans that fit just right on my big, fat ass. Melanie was the perfect version of me, golden, slender and beautiful. I was the pale, flabby copy that made her look bad. My eyes were sunken in with the lack of sleep due to household chores and late night homework. My hair limp unless I put a ton of mousse into it. I didn't bother with make up unless it was a concealer because it made me look like a racoon, or a creepy porcelain doll. My eyes were a dull greyish blue that didn't have the mystery and shining allure that Melanie's did. I gulped away the morning's tears, and thankful that I bought waterproof makeup slipped into a pair of black high-top Keds. Giving myself a final once over, I pulled out my compact and covered up the fading marks on my forearms that were now exposed due to the demi-sleeve of the sweater. Feeling as satisfied as I could get, I slung on my leather slouch purse, that was the size of a messenger bag.

"You should head to school, Mom won't be happy if you're late." Melanie smirked as she saw me get out of my closet and leisurely did her make-up, her car keys resting in plain view on her vanity.

"I know… I'm going to my bike now," I paused the door, stopping her before she said the daily demand, "And don't worry, I'll avoid you in the halls." I said, making her nod in approval as I walked out of the house and onto my mountain bike.

About half an hour later, I was heading to the girls locker room for my free period exercise. I wasn't allowed to leave the house unless given express permission, so I used school as a way to try and keep in shape and to let out the stress of my home life. Not that any of the daily runs and crunches got rid of the pouch on my stomach, instead I was stuck with large legs and an unused stamina for running. I sighed, as I kept my head down, trying to stop thinking about that and focusing on my dream instead. It was hard though, since I was already busy trying to ignore all of the whispers about Lydia Martin being missing in the woods naked or about the crazy Kate Argent's funeral today. I went to turn the final corner to my destination when I bumped into something and stumbled back a little bit. I flushed in embarrassment when what I hit gasped in surprise with me.

"Oh God...I'm so sorry, are you okay?" I looked up at the soft voice to see none other than Isaac Lahey looking down at me, concern and shyness in his soft blue eyes.

_Of course…it had to be him._"Uh, yea I'm fine sorry I wasn't paying an- ohmygosh! What happened to your eye?! Is that from me?D?" I stopped the my hand waving and gasped as I caught sight of the blackened spot.

He held his hand up to his eye, shaking his head and getting flustered, "Oh no, I...Uh, I got it at lacrosse the other day…"

I tilted my head, trying to read his expression, "Uh...I thought you guys had, like, cages connected to your face or something to prevent that."

"We do...I must've got it when I opened my locker then," he muttered, avoiding my gaze, "I guess I just wasn't paying attention and hit my eye. I, uh, actually have a practice now, so…I'll see you around, Melanie." He rushed off, clearly trying to hide how he really got it. I winced as I saw my own behavior in his while he walked away, the warning bell ringing. After a few seconds, I realized he called me my sister.

"Hey, wait! The name's Stephanie!" I half yell, more hurt than angry, "I only have like four classes with you…" I mumbled. _And thank you for reminding me of how the us that appeared in my dream is never going to happen._ I shook it off and went on to the girls locker room so that I could go on my run.

The rest of the day went on pretty uneventfully aside from that, filled with the everyday occurrences. You know, my sister slammed me into a locker a few times in the hallway, I got hit a few times in gym class, oh, and let's not forget when I was collateral damage at lunch: Jackson Whitmore decided to shove Stiles Stalinski into a lunch table which made me get pushed off of the corner I was perched on. Just a normal high school experience had by Stephanie McGrath. By the time I went to chemistry, I wasn't really expecting the day to be any more tortuous. But then again, Harris always did know how to make my days even more hellish. I sat down next to Stiles, frowning when I was met with his puppy dog gaze and a confused look by Scott McCall, who was sitting in front of us. I mean I knew the two of them, but we didn't really talk much unless Stiles visited Scott at the Animal Clinic where we both worked. If I were to label anyone as a friend, I feel like it would be Erica Reyes, but I didn't have any classes with her today.

I looked back at the two of them, and opened my hands, shaking my head, "Can I help you guys?"

"Sorry about knocking you over at lunch today," Stiles said, wrinkling his nose slightly as he fidgeted nervously. He probably took too much adderall again, or he was worried about something. Or someone… I mean with Lydia Martin missing and his very well known crush on her, anything was possible. "Jackson was just getting back at me for a comment I made earlier."

I sighed, looking back at Harris as he passed out papers. "It's fine...I mean, at least my food didn't spill all over me, talk about how that would be at work..." I winced jokingly, "Tuna sandwich from lunch would definitely have an odor to it, but at least the cats would like me for once, right?"

"Yea…Deaton would be so confused," Scott nodded with a slight laugh, but then got kind of nervous "So listen, Stephanie, uh... do you know if-"

"My sister hasn't heard hide nor tail from Lydia since the dance…" I sighed, noting how Stiles made a weird face at the word 'hide', "I'm really sorry guys. I mean they aren't even that great of friends. They just both happen to be dating people on the team...well if you count my sister screwing Greenberg Dating." I blenched, closing my eyes at that, remembering my encounter with Isaac and how he thought I was my sister. _I wonder if he's doing okay..._I shook my head, focusing on what was going on,"I hope that they find her though...Sorry I couldn't help more."

"Yeah...us too..." Scott sighed, but smiled slightly. He knew that I didn't have the best relationship with my sister or being known through my sister. It's really the only time anyone talks to me, and it doesn't help with anything given how it is at home.

I waved his thankful look away, watching as Harris passed us a pop quiz, and walked on until he reached his desk. Yup, definitely met my expectations. I went through the short quiz happy to notice that it was all things I knew. As I started to work on it, I was distracted by the sound of whispering next to me. I looked over at Stiles when he continued to speak to Scott.

"What if the next body part she steals is from someone who's still alive?" My eyes widened, wondering if they were still talking about Lydia, and hoping that they weren't.

"Um what do you mean-" I started, only to have Harris put his hands on his desk.

"This is a pop quiz, Mr. Stilinski. If I hear your or Ms. McGrath's voice again, I may be tempted to give you both detention for the rest of your high school careers."

We just sat there, slack jawed for a few seconds, but then Stiles decided to use his usual, if comical, flare for sarcasm and wit.

"Can you do that?"

I slapped my forehead with the palm of my hand, okay so maybe not so witty this time around, as Harris smirked.

"There it is again. Your voice. Triggering the only impulse I've ever had to strike a student repeatedly and violently. I'll see you at 3:00 for detention." He tilted his head, noting that I was still quiet and suddenly remembering that Stiles was talking to Scott. " You too, Mr. McCall? Ms. McGrath?"

Scott and I shook our heads saying, 'No, sir,' in unison making Danny and Jackson laugh at us. I glared over at Stiles for getting me in trouble when I heard Danny muttering to Jackson about his nose before he captain-sorry co-captain- ran out with blood streaming down his face. I smiled to myself. _Karma's a bitch Whitmore._

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_And that is the first chapter! Let me know what you think! If you liked it, hit the little follow and/or favorite button, and hey, give me a quick little review!_

_Lots of Love,_

_~Gwen_


	2. What the Hell is Happening?

_Hope you guys enjoyed the first chapter~! Here's the second!_

_**Disclaimer: I don't own Teen Wolf...unfortunately :P **_

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Chapter 2: What the hell is happening?

"Have a good night, Dr. Deaton!" I smiled, leaving the Animal Clinic the following day as the overcast sky was starting to darken slightly with the night.

School hadn't been too bad and Scott didn't have a shift today, so I was able to just relax. It was me and the boss in the office, having a quiet afternoon. I even got to play with some of the kittens and puppies that were up for adoption. It was so nice, I didn't really want to leave, but it was closing time and I had to see what Mother needed me to do today. I mean was lucky I was even able to have a job, so I try not to push the slack she gave me on the lease. Especially with this job that I loved so much. Helping all these pets was a way to fix things I can't fix in myself, and I never had to worry about the dogs or cats beating on me or saying nasty things. The only time they ever would hurt me was went they were scared.

Sending a text to my mom to see if she needed anything, I walked over to the small bike rack by the ramp. I was of course answered with a profane and demeaning response that said told if she wanted something she would damn well have told me-but in more words. I frowned, reminding myself to stop trying to be ahead of the woman because there was no pleasing her. Another text told me to get my ass home or else. Still sore from this yesterday's chores, I started to unlock my bike a little faster. That was when I saw Isaac on his bike.

_Man, I've been seeing a lot of him lately..._I mused as I watched him bike away only to grow concerned with the fact that he was biking with the frenzy of a bat out of Hell, a car chasing him from a few streets down . Scared and wanting to help, decided to chase after him on my own bike, swerving through shortcuts around the streets. When I reached the Alleyway, I saw his bike with it's wheel still spinning slightly. I didn't see him, but when I heard the squeak of the car catching up I put a stop to my search. Realizing how stupid I was for doing this, I hid behind an entrance ramp, leaving my bike next to his. Peering around I saw a man who looked like he was possibly Isaac's dad coming out of car as the rain started to pour down.

Mr. Lahey keeps walking, removing his glasses as he looks for his son, "Isaac! Isaac!" He pauses making me look where he is, "Isaac."

No response, a figure shows up in the mists, looking about Isaac's height. "Isaac?"

Mr. Lahey puts his glasses back on and stands for a minute, "Okay, that's enough. Leave whoever you're with. Let's Go." he shouts, clapping suddenly and moving forward to reach our bikes, which makes me jump from behind my metal shield.

No response. Mr. Lahey gets angry, pulling his glasses off as if the gesture gave him power, "I said leave your little _friend_, grab your bike and let's go."

No response. The figure is gone, making Mr. Lahey suddenly nervous. He pulls his glasses to his face again. "Isaac?"

No response, but suddenly Mr. Lahey is terrified by what he sees, running to his car and screaming hysterically.

I feel a rush of air as something big and very dark pushes by me, a wave of terror passing through me as I pressed myself against the ramp wall, shaking me to the bone when I see a tail. The screeching of a car door pierces through Mr. Lahey's shouts, which are replaced with squishing and crunching sounds making me choke back a scream, and tears run down my face. Then it was quiet, with no sound save for the pouring rain. I sit there for a few seconds, trying to process what just happened. Figuring that I was going to have to leave and get home eventually, I push off of the ramp and move to the center of the alleyway.

"M-Mr. Lahey?" I call out, moving nervously towards the car, trying to find a reason to stop what I was doing.

No response, the rain is falling harder and I'm shivering in the cold and with the inner chill of my terror. I reach our bikes, moving around them as I try again.

"Mr. Lahey? Are you okay, sir?"

No response, the car door lays next to the silver vehicle as I see his legs hanging out of the seat as if he was lying across the front.

As I open my mouth to call to him again, I feel a hand on my shoulder, making me give out a short shriek.

"Woah! Sorry, sorry…..didn't mean to scare you." I turned as the hand let me go, glad I recognized the owner of it.

"Isaac! You're okay!" I gasp, glad that he was safe. "I was starting to think it got you too."

Isaac gave me a look of confusion, "That what- Why are you even?" He shook his head, water escaping the ends of his corded brown ringlets in flying droplets, "You're Stephanie, right?" I nodded, inwardly happy he got it right, but realizing it was probably due to the fact that any resemblance I had to my sister was gone as I stood in the rain looking like a drowned cat or something. "What are you doing here?"

I flushed, crossing my arms over my chest and shrugging, "I uh...I was getting out of work when I saw you biking like crazy and wanted to make sure you were okay when-"

"You were what?" I watched as his eyes went wide and he looked at me like I had five heads. It made me frown sympathetically, reminding me of when I looked at Scott or Deaton that way when I when I would come to work with new bruises or even deeper bags under my eyes. It's strange for people like us to realize that people care about us when our own family tried to prove us wrong. He shook his head again, looking to the car door that was on the ground.

"What even happened?"

"I-I don't know, I was hiding behind the ramp." I ran my hands up and down my arms, shivering with the cold, and maybe shock . "But…. it was big." Isaac started to move towards the car , and I grabbed his sleeve. "Isaac don't!"

He looked down at my hand, and I noticed that he was shaking as much as I was. "I need to see if he's okay."

"M-maybe I should check it first, ya know? I didn't really sound too good and I-" I stopped, shaking my head as his eyes pleaded me to continue, "I have no idea what to expect."

"Well, whatever happened, he's my dad." Isaac moved forward, stopping when he realized that he couldn't move any farther due to the death grip I had on his sleeve. "Steph, I have to see it he's okay."

I nodded slightly letting go of his sleeve and walking with him, so that he didn't have to do this alone. As we approached the car, I noticed the blood stains around his dad. That didn't even begin to prepare me for what I was about to see. I held my hand over my mouth to keep back the scream that threatened to spill from my lips.

"Oh my god…"

Isaac's dad was strewn across the two front seats, his glasses slightly askew on the bridge of his nose. He was scratched up, but it looked as if someone had stabbed him in his stomach repeatedly, his sweater soaked with rain and blood. I grabbed into Isaac's hand, trying not to faint.

"Isaac, we need to get out of here." He just stood there, a terrified expression on his face. I shook his arm, "Isaac!" He looked down at me and then our entwined hands, making me drop it nervously, a flush crossing my face. I didn't even noticed our fingers had entwined. I shook my head and focused on the scene in front of us. "Come on, let's grab our bikes, and go. We can't be here when the cops come. You can't."

"How are they even going to-" He choked, his eyes getting glassy.

I pulled out my phone, "Once we're a safe distance away, I'll call it in." I turned towards our bikes, beckoning for him to follow me. "Do you have somewhere to go for the night? Being at home might not be the best idea."

"Uh, yea…" He picked up his bike, still not really reacting to anything.

"Can you get there safely on your own?" I looked at him worriedly, and he held my gaze for a few seconds, both of us not sure what to do. Suddenly my phone rang, causing both of us jump when my pocket started to play Darth Vader's theme song, "Shit...one second…" I pulled the phone from my jeans and to my ear, "H-Hello?"

"Where the hell are you?! You had better get your ass home this instant, or you'll be locked in that closet you call a room for the next week!"

"NO! Please, I just ducked somewhere waiting for the rain to die down. I didn't want to cause any issues to other drivers, I'm sorry." Isaac looked at me worriedly as I pleaded with my mother. "I'll be right home, Ma'am, please don't make me stay in there...I'll do anything else as punishment, just not that…" I felt hot, scared tears run down my face as the line stayed quiet with her thought.

"Fine, You'll go the rest of the week without food from home, you may eat at school and that's it. Just get your ass here now and make sure you get your damn homework done. And your chores."

I sighed in relief getting to my bike, "Yes Ma'am. Thank you, Ma'am." She hung up and I looked at Isaac. "Look I have to get home, but do you need me to go with you part of the way?"

Isaac, pulled up his bike, looking at me with an unreadable expression on his face, "No uh...I'm fine. You get home, don't want to get your mom too angry."

I smiled still hesitating, "I'll….I'll see you tomorrow, okay?" He nodded and I took off, hoping to whoever would listen that he would get somewhere safe, knowing that there was no such place for me.

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"And I mean seriously, Stephanie, what the hell? Mom and I were celebrating the fact that they found Lydia last night when we realized that you weren't cleaning out the kitchen." Melanie rambled condescendingly as I scrubbed at her feet, giving her a pedicure as part of my chores. This was only after mopping the kitchen and full on cleaning both of the bathrooms until they sparkled. "Make sure you do a color that matches my wardrobe palette."

"I said I was sorry...the rain was falling pretty hard." I mumbled, trying to erase the sight of Isaac's dad from my head and ignore the soreness of the newly formed bruises on my sides. _I hope he is doing better than me..._ "Uhm...do you want me to just do a french manicure style then? Or would a soft pink work better for your interest?"

She tilted her head back and forth trying to decide, "Go with a french manicure with the soft pink as the background." I nodded and got to work, making sure not to mess up a single toe and to always stay on the nail, never touching the polish to her skin. "Also, don't forget that I need the study guide done for friday's history test. And my paper on 'To Kill a Mockingbird' is due tomorrow."

I got up, waiting for the base coat to try, and went to my drying bag. Luckily everything from inside was still dry, so I was able to grab my sister's pink and white polka-dotted folder from it and have all the work I'd done in study hall be dry. She snatched it from me as soon as I held it out for her and flipped through it as I continued working on her nails.

"You are so lucky that these didn't get ruined in your rain tromping, "She said, standing when I was done, "Mom would never have let you use the computer and then I would have to tell her how you were making me fail my classes." I gulped, knowing that that would mean a full month being locked in my 'room'.

"Yea...lucky…uhm, do you need anything else? I need to get my homework done, mom already told me I was done with chores unless you said otherwise." I picked at my hair, which was still wet from the rain.

"If I think of something, I"ll find you, but for now, just get out of here. I don't need you stinking up the place with your wet mane."

I put away all of her pedicure supplies and went into my room, glad that Deaton had let me finish my homework during my shift. I curled up in a ball in my bed worrying about a pair of haunted blue eyes as I hoped that my dreams weren't plagued by strange creatures and bloody bodies.

I woke up and hurried to breeze through all of my morning work, making sure to make Mother and Melanie a really big breakfast. Then I ran to school: literally. I went right to the girls locker room and showered so that I could get dressed. I don't know why, but I felt like if I dressed nicer it would distract from what happened last night. I even took out one of the wall mounted blowdryers and tried to make my hair fluff out before throwing the front strands in a fishtail braid along the side of my face. I dabbed concealer on my face and foundation along my arms, putting on a few simple bracelets. My outfit even showed that I was trying to look good. I had on a light blue tank top under a grey henley that I had slightly unbuttoned over some black skinny jeans that were tucked into my motorcycle boots. To finish the the look I had my dark jean jacket on with a grey and rose patterned scarf. I also threw on my grey beanie over my hair, which actually looked pretty good as it fell in half-dry waves around my shoulders.

As I walked out of the room, I searched the halls for Isaac. I had my first two classes with him, but he would sit at the other end of the room so I couldn't talk to him. And then he would rush off before I got the chance to get anywhere near him. We had the same free period so I could try to talk to him then since I could corner him at the lacrosse field. I was a nervous wreck looking for him constantly, and if that wasn't enough, I keep getting flashes of his dad's body or even Isaacs instead. At one point, Erica touched my arm and I jumped into my locker with a gasp. She backed away wide eyed, and I just got freaked and ran down the hall. Once I reached our math classroom, I got us our usual desks near the wall, shaking in my chair. She arrived a few seconds later, her hands fisted in her baggy green sweater. She sat next to me, not sure what to do. Finally after a few more people came in and I had finally calmed down she turned to me.

"Stephy? Are you okay?" She bit her lip, "You've been acting weird all day, and this is me saying that." She chuckled nervously, playing with a few strands of her frizzy hair. She was epileptic, so her mom was very careful with what products and things she uses, and on top of that the side-effects of her medicine doesn't help anything. She tended to just let her hair frizz out, and hid in baggy, old sweaters over jeans and sneakers. We met when some guys were teasing her about it and I helped her feel better by telling her about how they were too ugly on the inside to see her inner and outer beauty. We've been best friends ever since, telling each other everything. Well, almost everything.

"Yea...sorry, my mom just gave me a hard time for getting home late last night with the rain. I'm still a little wired from it." I smiled weakly, getting rigid when Isaac came into the room and went to the back of the room, just two desks behind me.

"Are you sure? Because it looks like it's Isaac Lahey that's got you so freaked." She said, eyeing him suspiciously. Suddenly, her eyes widened and she grinned over at me in surprise, "No way! Were you home late because you were with him?!" She hissed as the bell rang and the teacher tried to call the class to attention. I looked at her like she was crazy, but he was too busy giving him a once over, eyeing him approvingly, "You go, girl!"

I flushed, shaking my head, "No! I mean...I bumped into him on my way home, but nothing like that." I rested my hand on the palm of my hand, forcing myself not to look back at him and focus on the algebra equations on the board. "Besides, even if it was like that, you know that Melanie would find out and and tell my mother about it. Or even worse, hold it over for me to get me to do even more things for her."

"And what if they didn't? Live a little, Stephanie, you are so much better than either of them, and you deserve better." Erica said, scooching a little closer to work on the problems with me. "And if someone is going to give you the chance at happiness, you should take it."

"And do what? I'm sure the allure of hiding away in my room closet and waiting for Melanie to fall asleep so he can sneak out would lose it's appeal pretty fast." I said, laughing slightly, glad that Erica was able to distract me from my problems. "Or maybe, we could have nice, romantic picnics amongst the animals at the clinic."

"You are such a downer, you know that?" Erica laughed, pushing me slightly. "I'm only saying, that you are a beautiful person on all accounts and he's cute, so if I was you, I'd snatch him up before someone else does."

"Like who? You?" I pushed her back as she shook her head, the two of us laughing until the teacher looked over and we went back to our work.

Soon the bell was ringing and it was time for free period. Erica had French so I told her I would see her tomorrow, since it was my free period and then chemistry which we didn't have together. She nodded leaving me at my locker where I waited for Isaac to walk by. When he did, I threw my unneeded things in the locker and grabbed his elbow, yanking him over to me. He just stared at me as I shut my locker crossed my arms, worry and anger coursing through me.

"Did you need something, Stephanie?" His eyes were cold and his was tense. To be honest, he looked like he was going to deck the first person who looked at him the wrong way. I don't know why, but it pissed me off.

"I've only been trying to see if you were alright, the entire day, but you know, you've insisted to avoiding me instead. " I snapped, softening my voice when I realized how false that sounded, "I don't know about you, I have been freaking out nonstop since last night."

"Right...of course you are, why wouldn't you be...I'm sorry…" He looked down, then back at me, looking more like himself. "Are you okay? Did you get home safe?"

I snorted slightly, "That depends on how you define the word safe." I mutter, shaking my head when I realized I said that out loud, "I should be asking you that. You seem really edgy...and angry…"

He clenched his jaw, slowly losing whatever composure he had, making me look down at my hands, "I'm fine. Listen I have practice, but I'll see you later, okay?"

"Well it's my free period so I-" I looked up to see he was already gone. I sighed, "I'll see you there…"

When I went out to the field, I saw that Scott was in the goal and all of the team lining up as a defensive player stood between Scott and them. I grabbed Stiles before he got into it, pointing to Scott.

"Hey, Stiles? Why is Scott in the net? I thought he was starting line and Danny was goalie…"

"Uh...he just wanted to try it out, he was really good at it last time, so he figured it would help the team try harder." He looked back from Scott to the line, "Look I gotta get to practice, soo….."

I let him go, "Right sorry…"

He ran off and I sat down on the bleachers as Coach Finstock yelled at the team, "Let's go! Line it up! Faster! Make daddy proud."

The first player ran forward and by the time he got halfway to the defensive player, Scott had rushed out of the goal and tackled him to the ground, sniffing at him from all fours. I tilted my head in confusion, making eye contact with Stiles who stood behind number 14, which I think was Isaac. Stiles just shook his shrugged, as Finstock yelled at Scott after he helped the guy up.

"Usually the goalie stays somewhere within the vicinity of the actual goal." I smiled as Scott nodded.

"Yes, coach."

He goes back in the goal but leaves it again to flip another guy on his back and then take out another guy with his stick. Both times he stops to crouch over them and smell. It was really a strange sight to see. And coach wasn't very happy about it.

"McCall! The position's goalkeeper. Not goal abandoner."

"Sorry, coach!"

Coach just goes back down the line, shaking his head, "Let's go!" The next person goes to run and Scott knocks him down, causing coach to go talk to Stiles for a few seconds. Meanwhile, I was watching Isaac as he seemed to shake almost with anticipation, his chest heaving in pants of breath. It made me uneasy, and I hoped that he was alright. I kept my eyes on him as Danny went next. There was a pause to things while Scott had a conversation with him before helping him up. When he helped him back up, Coach walked up next to the defensive player, glaring at Scott.

"McCall! You come out of that goal one more time and you'll be doing suicide runs till you die. It'll be the first ever suicide run that actually ends in a suicide. Got it?"

"Yes, coach." Scott said, standing the the goal, but everyone could tell he didn't mean it.

Coach just let out an exasperated, "yeah," Turning to Jackson who said something about his shoulder hurting and walked out of line to the bleachers. As Jackson reached the stands, I looked up to see a worried look on Stiles face and froze when I saw Isaac. I stood up, walking over to the boundary lines, my hands clenched into fists as he shook waiting for the whistle to go. As he went for the goal, both him and Scott kicked so hard off the round they brought up dirt. After they took a running start, they both leapt into the air, colliding and turning in such a way that they switched sides as they fell on all fours, staring at each other. Isaac seemed to snap out of it, both of them turning their heads to see the cops walking over to coach. All the guys were crowded at the sidelines as Coach called Isaac over, Scott and Stiles staying on the outskirts of the mob. Scared that they found us out, I ran up to the two, hoping that Stiles knew what was going on.

As I reached them, Stiles was looking at Scott nervously, "What are they saying?"

Scott tilted his head slightly, "His father's dad. They think he was murdered.

"Are they saying he's a suspect?" Stiles said, tapping his chin with his hand.

"I'm not sure, why?" Scott turned to him, freezing when I showed up, "Uh, hey, Stephanie! What are you doing here?"

"Same as everyone else? I was on my free period, watching you guys when I saw Isaac getting pulled over to talk to Stiles' dad. Do you guys know what that's about? Since you can evidently hear them…" I looked over at where they stood several yards away, "Or are you just that good at reading lips?" Scott nodded as Stiles just stared at me.

"Well to answer your question, Scott, if they think he's a suspect then they can lock in him a holding cell for twenty-four hours." He gave Scott a look, but turned back to me, "But to ask one myself, Since when did you even care about Isaac, Stephanie?"

I opened then closed my mouth, slightly offended by his tone."He's a friend, and I'm concerned, You know, if I'm allowed." I snapped, crossing my arms as I saw the friend in question being led back to the school, "Speaking of, he's heading back to the school, so good luck finding out if your dad thinks he's a suspect."

I stomped off, ignoring whatever Stilinski had to say, hoping I could talk to him before he was taken away. When I got to the school, I found Isaac coming out of the locker room changed out of his uniform. I ran over, grabbing his hands.

"Hey, are you a suspect? What did they say? Are you alright?" I rambled off, squeezing his hand lightly , trying to calm myself down more than him.

"Uh...I don't know yet, but they were telling me about how they found his body after getting your 'anonymous' call last night." He said, pulling his right hand out of mine to run it through his curls, "They told me to get changed and then I have to go to class while the sheriff talks to people."

I sighed, running a hand through my own hair, the braid coming out of it's bobby pins. I looked up at him nervously, "People like who?"

Isaac leaned against the wall, slamming his head back, "People like Jackson. Who has seen what my Dad use to-" He stopped, an angry look on his face.

"Hey, hey! It's okay..you don't have to talk about it." I whispered, taking a step closer to him. "I I understand…" I let out a short breath through my nose, "More than you think." I looked around the halls, hesitating before pulling up my shirts to show the bruises on my sides.

"Those are from your…?" Isaac started, reaching out as if to touch them, but instead using my hand to pull my shirts back down. I nodded, looking down at his hand, tears filling my eyes.

"Ever since I was a kid." I said my voice cracking, "But, no matter what she did to me, I would never kill her and I you wouldn't kill your dad either. We have to believe the cops will think that too." I looked back up at him only to his his gaze downward. He clearly didn't have the same faith as me. I slipped my hands out of his and hesitantly placed them around his jaw, lifting his face up slightly to meet my gaze. "Hey...You're going to make it through this, okay? All you need to do is tell the truth: You didn't do this."

I smiled at him, trying to convey what I was saying to him. He nodded, staring at me as if trying to find an answer in my , he wrapped his arms around my waist and pulling me into him. I froze, my arms falling to my sides, unsure of what to do. But as he started to cry into my shoulder, I snaked my arms around his waist and hugged him back, feeling some tears of my own slipping down my cheeks. I placed my head in the crook of his shoulder, facing him as I curled my arms around his shoulders. We just stood there for a few minutes, clinging to each other for support. Soon the bell rang and the halls were filling with people going to their last class of the day. We separated, just enough to be able to look at each other, not wanting to let go. I wasn't used to this, so I dropped my gaze a slight blush on my face. It grew deeper when Isaac lifted my head up by my chin, giving me a final thank you with is eyes. But then he dropped his hand suddenly, the one that was still around my waist dropping as well. I cleared my throat, slightly flustered.

"I...I uh have to get to class…" I said pointing towards Harris' room,

"Yea...um…I should go…" He said, pushing off of the wall as I moved past him. "Hey Steph?" I stopped and looking back at him. "Thanks...for everything you've done for me the past couple of days."

I smiled nodding in acknowledgement, "It's what friends do, right?"

"Yea, I suppose it is," He smiled, running a hand along the back of his neck. "Anyway, I….I gotta go."

We both turned and went off to where we needed to be. Though despite going our separate ways, I couldn't help but feel even more connected to him at that moment than I had been ever been to anybody before.

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_That's this chapter! Follow, Fave, Review, Whatever! Just let me know how I'm doing! :)_

_Lots of Love, _  
_~Gwen_


	3. Many Questions with too Little Answers

_Another Chapter, I know it's all in one day, but it'b only because I've been working on this for days now. I'm really only saying this because I want to warn people this isn't going to be a regular thing. I just wanted to post what I had up. So if in the future I don't post as frequently, please don't sent me hate! Hope you enjoy. _

**_Disclaimer: I am not Jeff Davis last I checked, so I don't own Teen Wolf, but I wish I did._ **

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Chapter 3: Many questions with too little answers

When I walked to class I couldn't stop worrying about Isaac and whether or not the sheriff would bring him into the station. Harris was rambling about something or another and I just couldn't be bothered to hear what he had to say. Of course, I had to know I couldn't escape my own problems for long because my sister came into the room with my english teacher as if reminding me of her presence in my life. Haymore went over and whispered something to Harris who looked up at me, an almost bored expression on his face.

"McGrath. Out in the hallway, Mr. Haymore needs to speak with you. I suggest you take your things with you." I looked at all of the people staring at me and flushed, not sure what was going on.

I got up, trying to ignore all of the jeers and taunts as I grabbed my books from my desk and shouldered my bag. Stiles and Scott gave me a look as if asking me what was happening, but I just shrugged, not knowing myself. Melanie had a smug look on her face and her usual 'I win, and you will always lose' expression on her face. Mr. Haymore looked at me as if he was meeting me for the first time.

"Now, Stephanie, your sister has told me something quite upsetting and I want to know your take on it." He nodded to my sister, who looked at her nails in mock shyness.

"I mean, I would have come to you sooner, it's just that, she was threatening me." She put on a feared look on her face, but glared at me as she spoke.

"What are you talking about? I wouldn't do a thing to-" I shook my head not sure what to do or what to say without knowing what she was going to say.

"I mean about how you were with Isaac Lahey last night and if I told anyone you'd-" She struggled back a fake sob, smirking at me when our teacher looked back at me.

"What? Why would you-" I bit my lip not wanting to look guilty or get Isaac into further trouble. "I saw him on his way to a friend's house last night, yes, but I was leaving work and heading home."

"Then why were you so late? Usually you get home about ten minutes after your shift, but last night you were home an hour later than usual. I just want to make sure you weren't anywhere dangerous." Melanie's look of fake concern drove me mad, making me lash out.

"As if you ever gave a shit about me before, you two-faced bitch!" I went to lunge at her, but Mr. Haymore grabbed me, pulling me away from her as she screamed in actual terror. "Let me go!" I snarled, "You don't know what she-"

"That is enough, Ms. McGrath! Why don't you go to the principal's office and they'll figure out what to do with you. Give the sheriff this note and he'll know what to do. Melanie, let's get you back to class."

I watched my sister nod, a freaked look on her face, but not failing to pull off a self-satisfied smirk as they turned the corner. I don't know how, but I still felt the pure rage that made me attack her in the first place. Granted it now has me in danger of being an accessory to murder and Mother will not be pleased at all, but I'd finally done it. I had turned the tables on one of them, and it felt amazing. I made my way to the principals office, wishing that my worry hand't made it leave so suddenly. I wanted to look at the note for Stiles' dad, but I was scared to see what it said. Something told me that if I gave it to him opened it would make me look even worse. I noticed that the door was closed and the sheriff was talking to Jackson. I sighed and slipped into one of the chairs, frowning when Stiles and Scott scrambled into the two seats next to me.

"What are you two doing here?" I raised an eyebrow as they leaned in and listened to what was going on. "Nevermind. I should have figured as much."

Stiles shushed me and so I just sighed and listened along with them. There were only two voices, Mr. Stilinski and Jackson's. The former sounded astonished with whatever Jackson was saying.

"Listen to me, you're telling me that you knew Isaac's father was hitting him?"

Jackson chuckled humorlessly, making me clench my fists. "Hitting him? He was kicking the crap out of him."

"Did you ever say anything to anyone? A teacher, parents, anyone?" I bit my lip, knowing that that probably wouldn't have helped, but at least it would have shown that someone cared. Sometimes that makes all the difference in the world.

"Nope. It's not my problem." I scoffed, making Scot look at me for a second.

"What? The guys an asshole." He looked at me slightly amused. Making me smirk, "Oh, I'm sorry, were you two the only ones allowed to eavesdrop?"

Stiles shushed me again as his dad spoke up, "No, no, of course not." He paused, a new tone to his voice, "You know, it's funny that the kids getting beaten up are always the ones who least deserve it."

"Yeah." There was a pause, " Wait, what?" I giggled slightly, composing myself as the sheriff came out, Jackson leaving as well as two deputies exiting as well.

"I think we're done here." Stiles tried to hide from his dad by struggling with a magazine, which only announced his presence further. He cleared his throat, looking at the deputies. "Hi, Scott." He greeted the teen and headed down the hall.

Scott watched him go, slightly embarrassed, "H-yea."

I sighed, getting up as the boys were ushered into the office by the new principal. "Excuse me, Sheriff?"

He turned around at the corner, waiting for me to reach him, "Can I help you?"

"I- Maybe, my sister and my english teacher just pulled me out of my class and he told me to give you this." I held out the note to him, hesitant to let it go as he pulled on it.

Giving me a look, he opened the envelope and read what it had to say, nodding as he went through it. When he finished it, he motioned for one of the officers to come over to us. "Can you secure Ms. McGrath, please, and put her into one of the cars while I get Lahey?"

The officer nodded, gently pulling my hands behind my back. My eyes widened as I felt cold metal at my wrists and he clipped the cuffs onto me, "Uhm...did I do something wrong?"

"Stephanie McGrath, You are being brought in under suspicion of being an accomplice to murder. You have the right to remain silent, anything you say can and will be used against you…"

And that's when I just stood in the hallway like an idiot as I listened to the Sheriff read me my rights for being at the wrong place at the wrong time just for doing the right thing.

It all happened so fast that I didn't get a chance to tell anyone. They even had us in different cars so Isaac didn't realize I was going to be with him. He was shocked when their car came and we were waiting at the door. I mouthed, "My sister" but he just looked even more confused, which made sense: I didn't even know what she knew or what the letter said. When they tried to question me, I didn't say anything aside from how I was at work and saw Isaac biking somewhere and went home, detailing the route I took, and how I was late because I was being careful of the rain. They tried to get more out of me, but I just stared at the wall, not saying anything. I can only guess they felt bad because they offered me my phone call, but I refused, opting to be put in my cell. They put me in the second cell to the right, next to what I could only assume would be Isaac's when they were done with them. The room was small with a simple cot along the wall. I was able to see through the bars of the partial wall but there wasn't much I could do aside from pace. All the same once I tried to talk to Isaac when they brought him in, but he wasn't saying anything. Giving up on trying anymore, I curled up in a ball on the cot and rocked myself to sleep, thankful that the cell was bigger than the room I had back home. I was so scared and tired that I didn't even get to enjoy the irony of the situation.

* * *

I woke up to the sound of a scrapping metal, which caused me to panic, hoping that whatever went after Isaac's dad wasn't coming to kill us. I don't know why I thought that, since we were secure in a station filled with law enforcement, but I did, and I crouched into the corner closest to Isaac's Cell, trying to see what was happening. The door next to me was open, the cell empty. l walked in front of where I was. I gasped, trying to stay as still as possible. It looked like someone had melted a wolf mask over Isaac's face, and his eyes were glowing like in my dream, only instead of the bright, cold blue, they were a shining yellow-orange. I held my hand to my mouth, trying to control my erratic breathing and heartbeat as it slammed it's claws against the bars, a snarl escaping it's fanged lips. I shook a little, breathing through my nose in fast short breaths. It turned it's head as if hearing something and went back into the cell that used to have Isaac in it. Silence pierced through me as the room suddenly exploded with action.

Stiles was pulled in by one of the sheriff's deputies. The man in question was limping and had a broken arrow in one of his thighs, holding Stiles by the mouth with one hand and holding a syringe in the other. The syringe had this thick red liquid inside that looked vaguely like blood, making me nervous about it's purpose. They both stopped when they saw the open door, wearing matching masks of shock and confusion. I ran over to the bars, waving over at them to go, but the wolf thing came out, attacking the deputy. The syringe and Stiles both fell, the later holding himself against the wall behind the room's desk. I vaguely heard myself shout and this time, he looked up and saw me. He scrambled to get the keys out of the desk, since the deputy most likely had the sheriff's keys and he was occupied. He ran to my cell and unlocked it, grabbing my hand. We both ducked back behind the desk where he was before and watched as I noticed the wolf thing drop his prey from where he was pinned to the wall, knocking him unconscious.

"What were you even doing in there?" Stiles hissed looking at me to distract from his evident fear.

"Not the best time for an interrogation, Stiles!" I hissed back.

Suddenly, a very muscular guy with black hair and a leather jacket stomped on the syringe, causing our attacker to look at him. It looked over at us with a snarl and went to lunge forward, but the newcomer growled, his voice sending fear through my entire being. The wolf thing flew against the wall, crouching low, it's arms covering it's face. After a few seconds, it lowered it's arms to reveal Isaac, cowering in fear, his hands and face back to normal.

Stiles looked at the guy shocked as I got up, scrambling over to my friend, "How did you do that?"

The guy turned around with a smile and I realized it was Derek Hale, (ya know, the original 'culprit' to all the animals attacks.) "I'm the alpha."

I crouched next to my friend, holding his hands, "Isaac? oh my god...Are you okay? What happened to you? What's going on?!"

Isaac let out a labored laugh, cringing in pain, "You have a habit of asking too many questions at once you know that."

I rolled my eyes, with a slight smile, glad that he was okay. Looking up I was surprised to meet Derek's eyes, a curious expression on his face, " And who the hell are you?"

"I...could ask you the same thing!" I said, flustered as I looked at each of them "…and since you all seem to know each, I'd like my questions to be the ones we answer." my voice shook as I glared at Stiles, and back to Derek "Starting with what the hell you meant by 'alpha' and what is going on with Isaac." I felt numb. It wasn't until Isaac gave my wrists a comforting squeeze that I realized I had my hands to be fisted into his sweater.

"There's no time for an explanation, my dad's on his way here." Stiles stood up, looking over at the three of us. "Stephanie, just help Derek get Isaac out of here. They will explain everything." He gave Derek a look and the other man nodded. "I'll call you when I get the chance."

"You don't even have my-" I shook my head, not sure what to do.

"Then I'll get it from Scott: GO!" He yelled pointing to the door as he handed Derek my bag, which he'd conveniently found in the desk.

I jumped when Isaac guided me up and followed Derek, who gave Isaac my bag. I blindly followed behind them, all the while gripping onto Isaac's hand, my knuckles white. We made our way through the halls and out the back, going through the cars and stopping at a small silver Honda. Derek smashed the driver's side window out and got in, fiddling with something underneath the steering wheel for a few seconds. The engine roared to life and he waved us in. Isaac obliged, pulling me gently with him, my hand still holding his in a death grip. As soon as I closed the door, Derek took off, taking all sorts of twists and turns until I had no idea where we were going anymore. I was shaking so hard that I was practically vibrating. Isaac made a pained grunt and I jolted, letting go of his hand. I gasped, watching the color return to our fingers.

"oh shit...sorry..." I hugged myself, trying to calm my nerves. I decided to focus on him, "A-are you Okay? What's going on?!"

Isaac looked at me with a concerned, "I'm more concerned about you...you look terrified." He faced the driver's seat, "Derek-"

"I'll explain everything when we get back to my place." Derek's voice was sharp, but when he directed his gaze to the rear view mirror to look at me, it softened, " Listen, Stephanie? Is that your name?" I nodded, "I'm going to need you to trust me, can you do that? You're not safe, they're going to think you and Isaac are running from the law."

"Well...seeing as you're a former fugitive yourself, sorry for being sceptical." I slouched in the seat, leaning away from Isaac and this Derek character.

"Well, they never found me, did they?" I frowned, knowing he was right.

"Yeah well, you're still not giving me any straight answers, so I think I'll stick with only trusting myself until then. It's worked wonders for me so far."

"Right, because sitting in a jail cell is the pinnacle of good life choices." Derek scoffed, his eyes on the road.

I sat numbly, "Sure as hell was better than home…" I mumbled, hoping they didn't hear me, though I caught Isaac looking at me sadly.

"What was that?"

"Nothing…" I said, somehow knowing that this driving stranger actually did hear me, but wasn't sure if he was supposed to. "Just...asking where we're going."

"Somewhere safe."

* * *

"You know I would say that you're crazy, but that would make me in denial, or possibly worse after what I saw back there." I frowned, pacing in front of the guys as they sat on a chest in an abandoned substation. We had gotten there a few hours ago, but since I spent most of that time in one of the subway cars fighting off a panic attack, the boys had only gotten to their explanation about a half an hour ago. I threw my hands up in the hair, tilting my head in acceptance.

"I mean, what other explanation is there? They made it look like whatever attacked Mr. Lahey had stabbed him with a knife, but it was clearly some kind of animal...it was too big to be a human, and last time I checked humans didn't have long ass tails like the one I saw on this thing."

Derek held a hand up to stop me, "Wait, you saw what did it?"

I shook my head, "No, I just saw the tail from where I was hiding behind a ramp, why? Do you know what it could be?"

He shook his head, standing up himself and crossing his arms. "I don't have enough , but it's possibly another form of shifter. Right now, the main concern is keeping you two out of sight until we find a way to get Isaac in control of the turn, and to keep you safe."

"How? By hiding me away in a substation?" I sat down where Derek used to be, picking at my lip. "I don't even know what my sister said to get me put in holding!"

"Wait your sister?" Derek paused and looked at me.

"Uh, yea...she told my teachers something and he pulled me from class only to give a note to the sheriff." I shook my head, "it was sealed in an envelope from the school."

"And you didn't read it?" His looked at me like I was an idiot.

"No, I was a little bit preoccupied with trying to seem innocent after lunging at my sister for being a two-faced bitch and figured that opening a letter for the sheriff would have the opposite." I growled, turning to Isaac for help.

"What? Don't look at me, I was considered guilty before I even had the chance to seem innocent."

"Yea well your stunt with Scott at practice didn't help either." Derek said, making Isaac look down guiltily.

I thought back to the day's practice and Scott's behavior and gasped, looking up, "Is Scott a werewolf too?"

Derek pinched the bridge of his nose, "Yes."

"Is that how Stiles knows?"

"Yes."

"Is he part of your pack?"

"He's...supposed to be," Derek growled, clearly getting annoyed with my questions.

"Did you bite him like you bit Isaac or was he bit by your uncle Peter that you mentioned before in your story about the Argents?"

"My Uncle Peter did, and before you ask, yes Allison knows about Scott even though she's a hunter. She worked out some deal with her dad to keep him from getting killed, but she doesn't exactly hold up her end of it. "

I nodded, speaking after a few seconds, "One more thing."

"What." Derek snapped, making me flinch back and hit Isaac's shoulder.

"What am I going to do about clothes?" I squeaked, causing Isaac to laugh and Derek to roll his eyes, "What? It's a serious question!"

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_That's this chapter, Follow, Fave, Review, etc! You know the drill!_

_Lots of Love, _  
_~Gwen_


	4. The Clean Slate, supposedly

_Okay, so this is all of the chapters I have up that are complete for today! Hope you enjoy this story as much I have enjoyed writing it! _

**_Disclaimer, I don't own Jeff's only mine which has been blended with his. _**

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Chapter 4: The Clean Slate, Supposedly

I was rolling up the sleeves to Derek's very large shirt he let me borrow, allowing me to my hands which at finally stopped shaking or wringing each other. After folding my clothes into my bag, I walked over to the generator, and unplugged my phone, checking for any messages. There were about twenty texts from Erica trying to figure out what was going on, and a few voicemails from Deaton, checking on me to see if I was okay since I missed work. Luckily, there were none from my mother or my sister. Luckily, I pay for my own bill with my work at the clinic so my mother can't turn it off, though I did delete the tracking app she forced me to download so she could keep tabs on me. I frowned when I noticed that there were three missed calls from an unknown number. I clicked on it, holding the phone to my ear. On the third ring I heard a yelp of relief blast out.

"Oh Good, You're safe! You had me worried there for a little bit."

"Stiles?!" I gasped, glad it was someone I knew, but still confused.

"Yeah. Who else would it be?" I leaned against one of the pillars as he posed the question.

"I...don't know, no one's ever told me they were worried about me before..." I looked up at the ceiling, depressed by saying the truth aloud.

"What?" I winced at his loud proclamation of shock. "Not even your parents?"

"How about we save my life story for another day and you tell me why you called me three times in the same hour." I said, trying to sound light so he wouldn't pry.

"Right, Uhm..I was just seeing how you were, uh ya know, handling everything. You know, since I'm assuming they told you by now." I smiled, glad to have the typical giddy and rushed Stiles I knew from school.

I ran my hand through my hair, blowing out a sigh, "Adjusting I guess...I mean I knew Scott was weird and that the whole Kate Argent story only half made sense, but I never expected it to be this kind of thing." I laughed a little, "It definitely explains Scott's game of tackle and sniff today."

"Yea...not one of my best plans." Stiles chuckled nervously, a soft sigh following it as if he just lost a huge weight off of his chest. I smiled a little, glad to ease his stress.

"So uh...how much trouble did you get in with your dad?" I bit my lip hoping he didn't get into too much trouble for our sake.

"Eh, he's more concerned with finding you guys and how one of his deputies had an arrow shot into his leg."

"Lucky break." I laughed, and he joined me before we fell into a comfortable silence. After a few minutes though, one question just needed to be answered, "Hey, Stiles can I ask you something?"

"Yea?"

"Derek mentioned that his uncle offered you the Bite, but you didn't take it, Why?"

"It's kind of a long story…and it sort of involves why Scott isn't part of Derek's pack" Stiles said, sounding like he wanted to tell me but that Scott would kill him.

"Come on Stilinski! I have spend half my night finding out that werewolves are real, do you really think that I'm going to sleep any time soon or let you off the hook that easy?"

"I guess it wouldn't hurt to tell you." I could almost see him tilting his head in agreement, "The long and short of it is, I didn't want to become like Peter and Scott was going to try and change back from the Bite, that is before Derek took it from him."

"How?" I tapped my lip with my pointer finger, my hand curled in a loose fist.

"Well, if Scott had killed Peter, supposedly that would have undone the Bite's work, but Derek killed him instead, taking away the alpha powers and Scott's only chance at becoming a real boy again."

I sighed, shaking my head, "Something tells me he would ever be 'real boy' again. Not after taking a peek through the veil like we all have. I don't know how you do it, Stilinski. Being the only normal human in the group? Seems like a big burden."

"I don't mind it so much," I could almost see him doing a half shrug, "Though I am getting tired of covering for him or playing messenger boy, when he goes of to see A-Derek about things." He stumbled, not even close to convincingly, making me laugh.

"Yea..you know that everyone at school knows they're still together, right? They aren't fooling anyone with the back to back convos and the secret meets in the chemistry lab between classes."

Stiles snorted, "It's more so that her parents don't catch on, especially now that her grandfather is the principal. They're gonna be trying harder to keep it a secret so that Gerard doesn't found out about Scott."

I nodded, forgetting he couldn't see me "I see…." I paused looking back towards the rest of the room to see Isaac walking over to me. "Hey...listen, Stiles? I gotta go...but keep me posted okay? And don't tell anyone where I am? I don't want Scott to worry, and Erica will just freak."

"If that's what you want. Just-Be careful with Derek, Stephanie...don't trust him...not completely." I kept my face neutral so that Isaac didn't see the concern I felt when I heard the tone in Stiles' voice.

"I'll keep that in mind...I'll talk to you later."

"Yea..bye."

I hung up the phone just as Isaac reached me, standing up straight, "Hey." I smiled shyly, not sure what to say to him. We hadn't really talked since they told me about the whole being werewolves and I started to question Derek to death.

"Hey…" He smiled back, slouching slightly as he ran a hand through his hair nervously, back to his usual shy self. I guess the full moon put his emotions in wack. We both laughed a little after I did the same thing, biting my lip. I looked down, trying to figure out what to say. Finally I figured I should just go with the obvious.

"So uh...how much of that did you actually hear, Superman?" I said, leaning back against the pillar again.

"Not...not much," He shook his head, smirking slightly when I gave him a 'don't take me for an idiot' look, "Okay, most of it." He laughed as I looked away to prevent myself from laughing, tilting his head to try and read my expression. "How are you doing really?"

I looked at him, "What do you mean? I thought you said that you heard-"

"Don't lie to me Steph," He leaned down, giving me a look that mirrored mine. His hand was resting on a different side of the square pillar, supporting his weight as he looked at me, "I can hear more than just you say."

I gulped, not able to break his gaze,"Is that so? And what is it that you hear?"

He smiled softly, "I can hear your heartbeat when you lied to Stiles. And Derek." He leaned closer, so that his forehead practically touched mine, "Hell, when you were lying to yourself just now. You say you can handle this, and you think you're fine, but really you're terrified. Believe me, I get it. I was the same when Derek first approached me about it." He straightened up, shrugging slightly, his hands in his pockets "Truth is, after tonight, I still kind of am."

I stood up straight, standing in front of him as if trying to keep the warmth that was lost from his change of proximity, "Then why did you accept the bite? Why did you let him turn you?"

Iaac barked out a harsh laugh, speaking softly, "Do you really have to ask? You of all people?"

I looked down and bit my lip, "To get away from your dad... to be strong enough to stand up to him."

He nodded and we stood there for a little while, not moving from that position.

"You know you could do it too. Get the Bite?" I snapped my head up, my eyes wide, "Don't act so shocked. I know you've considered it. I can smell your indecision, it's coming off of you in waves."

"Okay, this whole werewolf super senses thing is a complete and utter invasion of privacy!" I snapped, starting to move around him so that I could avoid this conversation all together.

"Wait, Steph," He grabbed my arm, making me wince as he used to strong a grip, "Shit! Sorry…" He let go, taking a step back. "I'm still getting used to-"

"Being the one with the power?" I crossed my arms, my eyes filling with tears, "What….what if I don't ever get used to it. What if I end up like them? What if I ki-" I choked, thinking back to when I was 5 and we lost Joshua. I looked down, my shoulders shaking slightly as I finally let the past couple days get to me. I had only cracked today at school, but now the levee was destroyed and I didn't know what to do.

"Steph, hey, hey, hey!" Isaac's hands found my shoulders, calming their spastic movements. "You can't think that way."

"How can you not?!" I looked up at him, my sight blurry with tears I wished would go away. "I mean, it's in our blood, right? Or at least that's what they say…"

"Then prove them wrong." He shook me lightly, causing me to clear my eyes. "If anyone could do it, it would be you."

I shake my head, a tight smile forming on my face, "You shouldn't sell yourself so short. I mean, you could have easily ripped through those bars and killed me tonight. Hell, I thought you were going to," He turned away, a look of guilt on his face, "But you didn't Isaac. It was your first full moon and you fought it. You were able to fight a hunter, and not kill him."

"Then you can, too. Maybe even better than me," He looked back at me, his gaze steady and sincere. I bit my lip avoiding his gaze, "Just think about it, Steph: none of the marks that serve as a daily reminder of your 'place' in the world. None of the inner weakness that allowed them to do this to us. No more feeling alone when you have a pack that sticks by you no matter what." He let go of my shoulders, instead taking my still slightly trembling hands into his. They were so warm and steady that I could feel myself relax a little as I looked down at them, really letting his words sink in. "This is a clean slate that people like us can only dream about."

I took in a deep breath, "Maybe that's why it sounds a little too good to be true...Maybe I don't deserve this…Maybe I'm just too scared to go through with it. There's no going back on it unless I want to die. It's just too... definite for me." I pulled away, attempting to leave again, but I soft chuckle caused me to turn back. "what's so funny?"

"Just that I never once thought that the girl who risked facing whoever was chasing me to make sure I was okay the other night would be so scared to help herself." Isaac's smile was kind, but also kind of musing, making me sigh, holding my forehead before flicking my hand away.

"Why are you pushing this? You barely even talked to me before yesterday." I whispered, curling my hand around my mouth my elbow rested in the palm of the other.

"Maybe because yesterday, I didn't think that anyone gave a damn about me," I looked into his eyes, shocked to see how sincere he was. "I'm just returning the favor by showing that person that they don't have to be alone anymore." He walked over to me, pausing as he stood next to me. Tilting down to me, he waited until his lips were next to my ear. "Just...think about it."

I nodded, not turning when he left, but calling out to him, "You know, I think I like this Isaac Lahey better than the one who first came over. He didn't suit you."

He turned, "Well than maybe this Stephanie McGrath needs to blossom into the one that's right for you. Just because we didn't talk, don't think I never noticed you."

I turned around, my mouth open to say something, but he was gone, leaving me alone to my thoughts. Sighing, I went off in search of Derek.

* * *

"Okay, so...how do we do this? Do I lie down, do I run and have you chase me?" I stood nervously within the subcar, Derek looking at me with an amused look, his arms crossed over his bare chest. I glanced down at his abs, "Damn you could grate cheese on those things."

"_What?_" I turned to see Isaac smirking at me with laughter in his voice.

"Hey, I'm about to have some super-built attractive guy I just met bite me while he his shirtless. Don't judge me for saying random things with my nerves."

"There's no need for you to be nervous Stephanie," Derek spoke, his green eyes glinting with a sort of honesty that I couldn't help but fall into.

"Easy for you to say...you were born with lycanthropy...you didn't have to try and clamp down your fight or flight instincts...not that I have many." I mumbled, looking at Isaac, who was giving me a reassuring smile. "Let's just get this over with before I change my mind."

"You won't." I turned to the alpha. "You've made your choice already. I didn't even have to talk to you about it."

_One of you felt the need to. _"Yeah, Yeah, save me all the you can sense when I'm lying crap and just bite me already." I giggled, making the boys laugh at me, "I'm sorry, I held onto my stomach, "I j-uu-st never thought I'd see myself saying that in such a serious manner."

"Okay, So first things first, lift up your shirt." I obliged, watching Derek's eyes skim over my scars and bruises, clearing his throat after a second, "Right, so Isaac? I'm going to need you to come over and hold her." I gasped as goosebumps erupted up my arms as Isaac slide his hands around my waist.

"Sorry," He whispered into my ear, making me flush, "Didn't expect to have you react that way."

"That happens when you touch someone's bare skin," I hissed, watching Derek come up to us, his eyes glowing red, and his fangs out as he smiled a bit too sadistic for my taste, "Which...um...if you want to let go, I wouldn't mind so much, since I would really like to run away now."

"Just close your eyes and take a deep breath," I felt a shiver as his voice tickled my ear, "Everything is going to be okay." his voice was soothing, but I still couldn't stop myself screaming as Derek's fangs clamped down onto my waist.

The next thing I remember, I was in the woods, with leaves in my hair and my hands covered in drying blood.

* * *

Third Person POV

As Derek had anticipated, Stephanie passed out from the bite, going slack in Isaac's arms. As he straightened himself out, he noticed the way that his beta looked at the other teen. He was, shifting so that he could cradle Stephanie's slight frame in his arms, moving slowly as if she would break with any sudden movements. There was this feeling of protectiveness radiating from him, and Derek was starting to doubt Isaac's reasons for wanting her to join the pack. Granted, he had been right when he said that she was tough, no doubt about it. Derek had felt her inner strength when she was at the prison, but he also felt a sort of weakness in her. She was too much like Scott, too willing to put herself on the line to protect others. It must be what made her chase Isaac down in the first place. She was one to ignore her own needs no matter what the cost, that was evident in all of the fresh bruises and cuts on her torso. She was clearly still hurting from them and hid that fact to make sure Isaac was okay throughout the night.

Shaking his head, Derek looked over at Isaac, "Come on, I set up a train car for each of you to stay in." He turned, knowing that the teen would follow him.

Upon reaching the cars, Derek pointed to the left, "This one is yours, Stephanie's the one on the right. I need you to watch over her tomorrow. Make sure her body takes to the bite, and that she doesn't hurt herself." Isaac nodded, going into her car and gently placed her on her bed. Derek had placed a wide mattress between the end benches of each of the cars, make shift wooden bedframes underneath them. As he came out, Derek stopped him from going into his car. " I hope that you didn't have ulterior motives for having her join the pack, Isaac. We need to be focused to Survive."

Isaac looked at him, a stoney glint to his eyes, "I wasn't about to leave her in the hands of her Family after what she did for me. No one deserves what the two of us went through. Especially not her."

Derek nodded, and left, still doubting that Isaac's intentions were as pure as he claimed.

* * *

Stephanie's POV

From my seated position, I could tell I was in the town's reserve. I was still in Derek's shirt, but had my jeans and boots on, both caked in dirt. I pulled up the shirt and at my sides, trying to remember which one Derek had bitten me on. I frowned in shock, noting that the bit had completely healed over somehow. I panted, looking again at the blood that had dried all the way up my forearms. My nails were covered and fingers were the darkest, but I knew that they weren't what did the damage. I started to hyperventilate, looking around me with small gasps as sound after sound exploded in my ears. I could hear birds that weren't in any of the trees near me, few coyotes loping back to their dens in the distance.

I pushed off of the tree I was leaning against and moved forward to try and figure out how to get back to Derek and Isaac, using the tree to support me, I stood up, my legs shaking when I noticed a small rectangular light a few feet away from me. Fearing the worst, I moved forward, smelling blood, sweat, and what I can only think is my own fear making my nose burn. About half way there, I noticed the blood among the leaves and the dirt kicked up from a struggle. I finally got to the light and found out it was my phone, with more of the viscous red liquid that has been haunted me since I woke up. I jumped when it rang, picking it up with shaking hands. I hit the answer button, taking a deep breath before pulling it up to my ear.

"He-Hello?"

"Steph! Thank God I've been looking for you everywhere!"

I slumped into myself as I feel to my knees, laughing with tear-filled relief when I heard the nickname that only two men have ever called me in my life, "Isaac...I don't know what happened, I just woke up and was covered in it." I started to hear footsteps from all around me, "Isaac need help."

"That's fine, I'm coming just tell me where you are." I took a deep breath, forcing myself to focus on his voice and to calm my overactive senses.

"I'm in the preserve...I few miles from the river….But Isaac...Hurry, I think I killed someone."

"Just stay where you are, Steph, we'll figure this out…." I heard him sigh, "I'm coming, Steph…"

I could only nod as I heard him hang up and fall into my knees, trying to shut out all of the senses and fear that was being thrown at me. _If this is what _better_ is supposed to be like, then I should have stuck with my life. _I have no idea how long I waited for him, but every sound was thundering in my ears and I couldn't turn any of my senses down. I could hear, see, smell, taste, and feel everything around me. I could even feel the anxiety of some of the animals that came came near me. I clenched at my sides to try and block it out, nothing seemed to work. I was numb and overstimulated all at once. By the time he got there, I was gasping for air, trying to calm myself down.

"Steph, Stephanie, You've gotta get up," I bolted up, wincing as I let go of my sides to push myself upwards.

"Make it stop, Isaac, everything's...everything's…" my eyes darted all over the place with each new scent and noise. I looked back to him, "This is the worst definition of better that I have ever experienced."

"Your body is just adjusting to all of the changes, and I'm sure, clawing into your sides didn't help." He looked at the holes in my shirt with a concerned expression. "Why did you do that to yourself?"

I looked down and lifted the shirt up, gasping as the scratches disappeared on my flawless stomach. "My bruises! My Scars! They're all-" I ran a hand down my stomach, hating myself for the joy I felt that it was finally flat and that my waist was thin and swelled to my hips in a beautiful, though healthy way, but only because I had other things to worry about. "What is happening?"

"You are going through the final steps of the change. As you adjust, your senses will as well." He smiled, as I marveled over the changes I could see. "If you think that is shocking, wait until you see your hair."

"My ha-" I held onto my hair, but found that it was shorter than it should be. Instead of falling to my ribs, it was curling at my shoulders, falling slightly past them, but that's not what freaked me, out. As I pulled it up to look at it, I was glancing at the same coppery red strands that I had in my dream. I had almost forgotten about it with all that's been happening. "Okay...well, that's a thing…" I ran a hand through it, wincing as I pulled at notes and twigs and leaves. "Where do we go from here?"

"Okay, so now that we've calmed you down enough to have your other senses dull, we try to figure out where all that blood from." Isaac said, taking the hand closest to him and looking at how it was dark at the fingers and lighted to where it stopped about halfway towards my elbow. "I'd say you shifted last night judging by the evidence of you clawing at something."

"Or someone!" I said, standing up abruptly, "I told you on the phone! I think I could have killed someone, or maybe justed injured them! We have to find them! we have to-I paused, bending back to the ground and picking something up, "We have go to my house."

"Did you remember something?" He stood up, trying to see what I was looking at.

"No...but I didn't have this when I left with you and Derek." I looked up at him and held my palm out to him. Sitting in my hand was a silver heart necklace with a small keyhole design embossed into it.

"What is it?" I sighed, holding it to my chest.

"It's a locket my dad gave me before he left." I pulled it away so that I could open it, "It's the only picture I have left of him."

"Are you sure you didn't have it when we were brought into the sheriff's station?" His eyes bore into mine, holding the same fear that I have been fighting off since I woke up.

"I'm positive. Isaac?" I gulped, "I need to go home."

* * *

_Okay, y'all know my spiel at this point! Let me know what ya think!_

_Lots of Love, _

_Gwen_


	5. An Unspoken Connection

_So last we let of, Stephanie was freaking out yea? I mean for a good reason what with me being an evil person and leaving you guys in suspense about what she did. Anyway, let's see what's up, huh?_

_**Disclaimer: I still don't own Teen Wolf, unfortunately**_

* * *

Chapter 5: An Unspoken Connection

We drove to my house in the stolen honda from last night, making sure to take all of the backroads so that we didn't get seen by the cops. As we rolled up to the driveway, I noticed that my sister's car was still there, but my mom's wasn't. My mom never went to work on Thursdays and sure has hell never left the house. Isaac looked at me as if trying to figure out what we should do. I looked at the house, and gasped, noting that the big bay windows of the living room were smashed open and the curtains were hanging off the rods in shreds. I signed, pulling at my ponytail I'd fixed my hair into.

"Well...I was definitely here…" I tapped at my legs, bracing myself for what I may or may not see. Though we had cleaned my arms with some wipes we found in the glove compartment, I could still see it on my hands. " Okay...I'm going in."

Isaac grabbed my arm, stopping me from getting out of the car,"Are you sure you want to do this? We don't know what to expect."

I turned to him, my hand still on the partially opened door, "It's my family, Isaac...I have to make sure they're okay. Please understand...you were in my shoes just a couple of days ago."

"The main difference is that I know I didn't do it." He looked at me searching for anyway to talk me out of it. When I held his gaze, he sighed, letting go of my arm and running a hand through his hair. "Fine. But I"m going in with you."

I smiled, "I can live with that." and I got out of the car. As soon as we went through the windows since I seemed to have lost my key, something strange started to happen. I would walk past something and a small flash of memory would push it's way into my head. The first came when I went to my room, where I knew I had last had the locket.

_I was zipping up a duffel bag, when the small door slammed open, causing me to turn around. My mother was standing there with the butcher's knife from the kitchen._

I held my hand to my forehead, stumbling as I fell onto the bed. Isaac looked at me concerned, but I shook it off, passing him the duffel bag, and moving on to my sister's room.

"_What the hell do you think you're doing here, you little slut?" My mother growled, pulling at my arm, and throwing me into the middle of the floor, "I thought I'd finally rid myself of you, and then I hear that you and your psychopath of a boyfriend escaped from the station."_

I turned to Isaac, "It was my mother...she's the one who wrote the note…"

He looked at me confused, "Do you remember?"

I shook my head, "Just flashes." He touched my forearm, making me gasp.

"_What the hell did I do to deserve all of this?! Why has my life been such a hindrance to you?!" I was screaming, trying to break free of her grip. _

"_You know what you did, you ungrateful little bitch! My son! My husband! Both of them gone because you weren't good enough!" She threw me into the hallway, "They all left because of you!" _

"She-She came at me with a knife...threw me into the hallway…" I moved to the hall, touching the wall that I had hit.

"_Dad left because of how you _treated_ me! He left because you would go after him if he so much as smiled at me instead of you!" I stood up, twisted her arm until I heard a crunch, She screamed falling down. "And why does everyone blame me for Joshua when it was Melanie who tried to get him to shut up that night?!" _

_I was dragging her to the living room while she simpered in my grip. _

I stumbled back into the living room.

_I threw her against the couch, clutching my head. When I stood up straight, my mother was staring at me in pure horror. _

"_What are you?" _

"I-I shifted in front of her…" I was on the floor, Isaac kneeling next to me, trying to get me to calm down.

_The windows scratched at my arms as I ran, my sister crying over my mother's motionless body._

I slumped, looking to the window, trying to piece together what happened between the last two flashes. Isaac was shaking me, but I couldn't hear what he was saying, instead, I stood up, numb and walked out the door, falling against the hood of the car. I don't know how long I stood there, or when Isaac got there, but I jumped at the sound of a car door slamming and a pair of keys. I turned and saw Isaac standing in front of me in a protective stance, my sister looking at us in shock as she stood next to my mother's car.

She glared at us, "What the hell are you doing here? Haven't you done enough?! Our mother is in the hospital because of you!" She moved towards us, her hands in fists.

I don't know what happened, but the next thing I knew, I was holding my sister by her throat, with Isaac standing next to me and telling me to stop.

"And you think that I was going to feel bad for that?! After _everything_ that she did to me? After everything she let _you _do to me?!" I threw her onto the grass, my eyes red in a blind rage.

"Steph! Hey, Hey, Hey! Steph, we need to get out of here now!" Isaac pulled my hand up and I saw that my nails had turned into claws. "Shit...your eyes…Steph, you need to calm down."

I nodded, taking a few deep breathes, we turned to leave, but I stopped going back to where my sister had crumpled on the ground and crouched in front of her. "And FYI? If you so much a breath a _word_ of this to anybody? A hospital bill will be the least of your worries."

Melanie's eyes went wide as I tucked some of her hair behind her ear with a smile and walked back into the car, driving off with Isaac. His hands were tight on the steering wheel as we moved started to drive away. I looked down at my hands as they shook with fear. Fear of the power I just had, and fear of who I could have hurt. But mostly fear of myself.

After a few minutes of silence, Isaac spoke up, "So I guess the good news is that you didn't kill your family…"

"I suppose...maybe I didn't kill someone after all...maybe the blood is from me breaking her arm and digging into her arms with my claws?" I looked at him hopefully, but lost it when I saw the look in his eyes. "Isaac, what is it?"

"Steph, your eyes weren't like mine...They were blue."

* * *

We didn't speak the entire drive back. Isaac just kept his eyes on the road and I was trying to make myself look somewhat presentable in my torn up shirt and muddy clothes. After we pulled up, we didn't get out of the car, just sat there. I could feel Isaac looking at me, but I just look forward, unable to think about anything. Isaac turned the car off and turned towards me, the seat protesting with his movements. I still didn' look at him until he spoke, breaking the hour long silence that rested between us.

"Steph I just-" He hesitated when I looked at him, a blank expression on my face. "I just want you to know, that whatever this is? We'll figure it out." He took my hand in his, "I promise."

I sighed, looking down at our hands with a humorless laugh, "What is there to figure out? I put my mother in the hospital. Threatened my sister. Hell, I almost _killed_ my sister." I looked up at him, my eyes glazing over with unwanted tears. "Maybe me taking the bite wasn't such a good idea. Maybe despite all of your faith in me, I was right, and I can't do this?"

He didn't reply, just sitting there, trying to find the words to say. He sighed, giving my hand a squeeze before getting out of the car. He leaned back through the door, looking at me with this strange look in his eyes, "Look...let's just...talk to Derek okay? Maybe he has some answers."

I nodded, reaching back and getting my duffel, "Okay…"

He smiled, closing his door and leaning against the room of the car as I got out, "Thata girl."

I rolled my eyes, flipping my hair out from under the strap of my bag, "Shut up."

When we went down into the station two things happened. The first being that we say a furious Derek look at us with flashing Red eyes and his arms crossed over his chest. The second was that I saw my best friend with a bite-shaped blood-stain on her shirt along with some drastic physical changes. Before I could really absorb the second, the first rounded on Isaac, forcing him against the wall with his words as he walked towards us.

"One thing Isaac. I gave you one thing to do: Watch over her and make sure everything went fine with her Bite. And what do I find when I come back?! Both of you gone, and her coming back like she had a fight with the woods and the woods won! How hard is it to keep a girl who is half your size down here, Isaac?! What could have possibly-" He stopped whatever he was going to say when I stood between them. "What are you doing, Stephanie?"

"Lay off of him, okay?!" I glared at him, ignoring the shocked looks that Isaac was shooting at the back of my head. "I must have wandered in my sleep and I had some issues with my first shift. If anything you should be _thanking_ him for finding me! If he hadn't I might have killed someone! I might have killed my-" I stopped, looking at Derek, and taking a deep breath. "I was lost in the reserve after running away from my house where I attacked my mother and had her hospitalized. And when I went back to try and remember what happened, I almost killed my sister when she found me. If it wasn't for Isaac, there would have been no almost."

Derek looked from me to Isaac and back. He took a few more steps, towering over me, "Need I remind you that you are both _fugitives _of the _law_? What if someone found you? What if your sister called the police?! What were you _thinking_ going off like that?!"

I held my ground, feeling my claws come out in my anger, my eyesight going red with what I now understand to be my wolf vision. "I wasn't _thinking_! That's the problem! My instincts took over my body and I went to find the one thing that made me feel like I was part of something! Maybe you should pay attention to your own newbies and not put them in charge of each other."

"You're eyes…" Derek's voice was strained as his own widened, back to their light green color.

"Yea...I know. They're blue. We can talk about that later. First," I turned to my friend, "What is she doing here, and why does she look so amazing? No offense or anything, Erica." She nodded slightly, still trying to figure out what was going on

Derek, sighed, looking back at her, "She's...a new beta. As you can see, she took to the Bite really well."

"You..._turned_ my best friend? Why?" I looked at her with a pained look in my eyes.

"Maybe I wanted it, Stephanie...I mean look at me! Look at you!" She joined us, pleading at me with her eyes, "I can be whoever I want to be now! I can be...better." She smiled, turning to Derek. "I can be better than all of those jerks at school."

I stood numbly, looking at the ground. Noticing that she was looking at me expectantly, I smiled, but feeling completely drained. "You're right...I'm sorry. I guess I just…didn't take you to be someone who would change yourself to get back at others…" I left, ignoring Derek's calling for me to come back and not noticing that I was being followed. I needed to get out of these blood and dirt stained clothes.

When I got into 'my car' I threw the duffel onto one of the benches and yanked Derek's tattered and bloody shirt over my head. Instead, I pulled on a large, midnight blue, off the shoulder sweater and replaced the jeans with a pair of black sports shorts. I forced a brush through my hair, groaning as I hit all of the knots and leaves in it. When I finished, I got onto the bed and curled up against the pillows laid out at the 'car' door, holding my knees to my chest. I jumped slightly when someone's voice sounded from the side door, feeling silly since I had sensed his presence in the next car over.

"Penny for your thoughts?" I kept my gaze forward, not in the mood to talk to anyone: not even Isaac. He left a pause for me to talk in case I just needed time to answer before continuing, "Come on, Steph, you can't just stand up for me like that only to run off and give me the silent treatment."

I looked over at him briefly before sighing and letting out what I've been feeling all day. "I just...don't know what to do…" I moved my legs so that they curled underneath me looking at my hands as I felt him get onto the bed and move next to me hesitantly, his eyes on me as I spoke, "I feel like the ground is crumbling under my feet and I can't stop myself from falling."

I turned to face him, wishing there was something he could say to save me. He seemed like he was trying to find it, but in the end just sighed, with an annoyed chuckle, "You know...I wish I had all the answers for you...I wish that I could tell you that everything was going to be alright. But after today, I don't even know anymore." He shook his head, looking at the opposite end of the car.

We sat in silence for a spell, making me wonder what time it even was. I leaned against his shoulder for a little bit and tried to think of something else. At first I just babbled about how I was surprised I had broken my mother's arm of all things, considering how much I had imagined making her feel the way I did. Then I got Isaac to open up and we just said anything and everything about ourselves to get to know each other better. I learned that Isaac's mother died of cancer and that he had an older brother Camden who died in combat a few years ago. I told Isaac about my dad and how he moved to Chicago, leaving me behind and making my life what it was like today. I told him about how my mother didn't used to be too bad, aside from the strict chore regiment and comparing me to my sister. I know it still sounded bad, but at least those days I could say she was trying to make me a better person and pretend that she actually cared about me. I didn't tell him about Joshua, there were some things I just wasn't ready to share.

At some point we had fallen into laying positions, Isaac on his back while I was curled up on my side next to him. I must have started to drift to sleep a little later because Isaac sat, up making to leave.

"You should rest...who knows if you actually got any sleep last night." He had his back to me, and I couldn't stop myself from feeling a little hurt at his mood swing.

"Wait..." I grabbed his arm, looking into his eyes when he turned back. "Please….stay with me? I don't want to wake up somewhere afraid of what I could have done again...who knows what Derek would do if he caught me." I didn't want to be alone after what happened last night.

Isaac looked at the door, then back at me, as if fearing what Derek would do if he saw us more "Are….Are you sure?"

I swallowed, nodding my head, "I wouldn't have asked if I wasn't. I trust you, Isaac." I could see that he was still nervous so I tried to convey how much I meant it, "I meant everything I said do Derek, Isaac. Every word. You made me come back when I could have killed Melanie...You have kept me sane when I may have lost my mind at any point today. And I…" I looked down at the bed trying to figure out a way to make him stay, "There's...um...there's plenty of room if that's what you're worried about…." I flushed, looking away, "Just please….don't leave me"

"Okay…" I looked over at him, seeing "If that's what you want...then I'll stay with you."

I let out a breath I didn't realize I was holding, letting go of him, closing my eyes "Thank you…Isaac"

I vaguely remember feeling the mattress shift when Isaac laid back down before I drifted to sleep, feeling safe in knowing that he was there to save me from myself.

* * *

Third Person POV

Isaac watched her as she fell asleep, her body relaxing voluntarily relaxing for the first time since he met her. She had been putting on a brave face for everyone, only letting him see what she was going through. Even at school he could see through her defenses. After all, he had them himself, and they were what stopped him from talking to her before all of this. He could remember the first time he caught of a glimpse of her inner turmoils. He should have tried to help her then, but he was too scared of her pushing him away that he couldn't bring himself to try.

_It had been a bright and sunny May morning their freshman year, but she had been wearing a dark flannel over jeans with her boots. She was sitting in a desk that was one ahead and to the right of where he was. He hair was pulled into a braid that fell onto her right shoulder and she was turned away from the window and towards the row he was in, talking to Erica. The sleeves of her shirt were folded up to her elbow and secured with the strap that was attached to the shirt. He remembered the grey and blue pattern making the flecks of grey in her eyes seem lighter and her blue eyes more stormy. _

_It was when she went to push Erica away with a laugh that he saw it. The thin white line along her collarbone. Her shirt had fallen open slightly, and her tanktop had folded to expose it. He remembered Erica pointed it out as she hurried to cover it up and said that it was from an accident when she was a kid. But he knew better, he could see it in her nervous motions and half formed story. He could even see it when she hastily looked around to see if anyone had noticed, and their eyes met. It was the first time she had ever looked at him. He remembered smiling to her and giving a small wave, trying to convey that he understood why she hid the mark with his eyes. To this day he doesn't know if she understood the look when she gave him a small smile in return, but he did know what was hidden in that smile._

He was broken from his memory by Stephanie jerking in her sleep, her head tossing back and forth and her hands moving next to her face. She was mumbling in her sleep, but it was pained and too soft for him to hear from where he was. He moved closer to her, careful to not disrupt any of her motions.

"Joshua...Josh…" She muttered, her voice strained and worried, "Joshy? Wake up….Joshy!" She shouted, her shoulders jerking. "Mom...mom I didn't- mom what are you doing? MOMMY!"

It pained him to see her like this, reliving a clearly painful memory. When he couldn't take it anymore, he did the only thing he could think of and wrapped his arms around her, pulling Steph into his chest. He felt her fall apart into sobs, and try to push him away, but he kept holding her, rubbing her back soothingly. She stopped struggling and slumped into his embrace, her hands entangled in his shirt. He rested his chin in her hair, wishing he could take away all of the pain that she felt.

"It's okay Steph...I'm still here...You're not alone…" he whispered, a few tears of his own falling into her beautiful coppery hair. "I'm not going to let anything happen to you…" He heard Derek at the door, and turned so that he was on his back with Stephanie on his chest. The alpha looked at him confused, a worried look on his face. Isaac, looked at her, and back at Derek, "She was having a nightmare...When I came in she was tossing and turning. I think her claws might have been out too…" He looked at some claw marks he hadn't noticed in the blanket next to him, "I wasn't even sure if this would work, but it did."

Derek looked down at Stephanie's relaxed form before looking back at Isaac, "Stay with her…you seem to be the key to keeping her in control…"

Isaac nodded, and watched as Derek left before, resting his cheek against her head and falling asleep, her scent calming him and keeping his own nightmares at bay.

* * *

Stephanie's POV

When I woke up, I was met with my pillow rising and falling steadily. Opening my eyes, all I could see were my hands gripping onto a dark blue cloth. I jumped back when I finally realized what it was. Of course, then his arms stopped me from their positions around my waist and back. I felt his cheek on top of my head, and shifted slightly so that it rested against my forehead instead. My hands relaxed, and I straightened out his shirt, leaving one on his chest and snaking the other around his shoulder. I froze as he stirred a little, trying not to wake him. I don't know why, but part of me just wanted to relish in this moment. I have never felt so safe with someone before.

The past few days were all the time I've really known him, but it _felt_ like I've known him forever. I would trust him with my life if it came down to it, and I would put my life on the line for his. It scared me that I was getting this way over someone I'd just met, but it made so much sense. That day freshman year...the day I saw him for the very first time came back to me. I had felt a pull towards him that day that faded through the year, but recently, now that I think about it, the night he was turned, I felt that pull all over again and it intensified the more time I spent with him. Now, as we both lay here turned, I would do anything for him. It was a terrifying but uplifting feeling all at once.

Careful not to wake him, I rolled over as naturally as I could, his arms coming loose this time. I crawled out of the bed, careful to not disturb him and slipped out of the car, thankful for the lack of an actual door. After looking along the train, I went to the office, guessing that Derek had his room there where he had a vantage point. Just before knocking on my door, I got a text from Stiles. Looking down, I frowned, knowing that today was going to be an interesting one.

**To Stephanie:**

** Hey, did you guys know anything about the homeless guy they found dead in his tent at the preserve? [link]**

I gulped, typing a quick answer before continuing on my personal mission.

**To Stiles:**

** Something tells me that after this talk with Derek I will...and you guys aren't going to like it.**

I knocked on the door. When Derek answered, I showed him my phone, the video link pulled up on my phone.

"Something tells me that his has to do with why my eyes are blue."

* * *

_That's this chapter, sorry for all these awful cliffhangers, but they are just too good to pass up! Follow, fave, review, whatever! Just let me know how I'm doing! _

_Lots of Love, _

_~Gwen_


	6. Welcome to the Pack Life

10

_Hey all, So I know there isn't a lot of actual show going one, but I'll be adding it with this chapter! I hope you still like it and keep reading it when I do :)_

**Disclaimer: I, very unfortunately, don't own Teen Wolf. If I did, there would be much more Isaac and he and Stiles would have someone to love them for always and not for a short span of time.**

* * *

Chapter 6: Welcome to the Pack Life

Derek sighed, looking as we stood at the door, the video playing. I listened, refusing to look at the footage of what I had done.

_Police have found the remains of a locally known beggar by the name of John Manasso late last night. He was found in the ruins of a tent he'd had pitched in the Beacon Hills Reserve where sources claim he was brutally attacked by some form or rabid animal. No official word from police whether or not this just an animal attack or if it linked to the murder of Robert Lahey. The suspects of which are still at large since their escape from the beacon hill sheriff's sta-_

Derek turned the video off, handing my phone back to me with a sigh, "Well, that answers a couple of your questions, I suppose. Isaac told me last night that you guys never did find out if you actually killed someone and yes, it does have to do with why your eyes are blue...like mine were before I turned into an alpha."

I crossed my arms over my chest, "Is it _because_ I killed someone? Or does there a rule book against killing homeless guys hiding in the woods?" My eyes widened, as I realized I said that outloud. "I'm sorry...I usually keep those kinds of comments to myself."

"It's alright, it's just the Bite doing it's work: You were always bottled out of fear of what your family would do, since you took the Bite for strength and I'm guessing to stand separate from your sister, you'll be a lot more open in saying what you think."

"And that's why my hair and body changed." I scoffed, looking down at my petite and healthy form. "I used to think I wasn't as pretty as my sister, and now I'm a middle ground...not as skinny as she is, but beautiful and healthy. The hair, I don't know why it changed, but it will definitely stop people from calling me Melanie at school, well...if I actually was still able to go to school."

"And that's what you saw with Erica last night, She felt like she wasn't good enough to get anyone's attention, to attract anyone. And now she looks like a more confident and well for lack of a better word, attractive version of herself." Derek leaned against the door, a lot calmer than when I first opened the door. "Now, as for your eyes, that does have to do with the rules of killing someone, but maybe not as ludicrous as you think. When you kill someone, someone innocent, it takes away a bit of your soul and leaves a darkened mark, taking away the bright glow of your yellow eyes, and dulling them into the steel blue ones that you have. It doesn't make you any lesser of a person if you don't let it. It just serves as a reminder of what you did and to make sure that you can stop yourself from doing it again."

I nodded, leaning against the railing next to the door, "So, will I ever be able to remember that night or will it be blocked from my memory like the small piece before I left my house?"

"Well, they'll come to you in time, but if you choose to forget, then they'll stay lost. It's all up to you now, Stephanie." Derek looked at me a serious, but slightly concerned look in his eyes.

I smiled slightly, thinking of how it was the nickname that kept calling me out of my shift, "Steph, Call me Steph."

Derek nodded, "Okay then, Steph. Go get Isaac up, we start training in an a couple of hours."

* * *

I shut off the buzzer alarm on my phone, having gone back to sleep for an hour, giving us plenty of time to talk and to get ready for training. I turned over, facing Isaac, glad that he was still asleep when I came back. I curled my hand around my phone and put it on the pillow to hide my face. I smiled, seeing him turn onto his back and stretch, laying an arm under his head and the resting the other hand on his chest. Turning his head to me, he smiled, a sleepy look still in his eyes.

"Hey…" He mumbled, his voice deeper from sleep.

"Hey…" I said, snuggling up on the pillow so that he could see my face, which I made into a mock serious face, "You have some explaining to do, Mr. Lahey."

"Oh do I?" He turned onto his side, his hand removed from his chest and dangerously close to me, "And what do I need to explain, Ms. McGrath?"

"Oh, I don't know...maybe how I was encircled in your arms when I first woke up?" I looked at him curiously, my joking tone now gone.

"If I answer that you get to tell me why you left the car after you woke up." I opened my mouth shocked, "Yea, that's right, I felt you leave, you weren't as sneaky as you thought. Good try though."

I puffed some air, "Easy. I went to talk to Derek about the whole blue vs. Yellow eyes situation and shared with him some information I got from Stiles." I shrugged lightly, "You're turn."

"Well I was keeping my respective distance when you started to talk and move about in your sleep." I looked down, not realizing that he was forced to watch one of my nightmares, "You kept calling for a Joshua...and then it sounded like you were trying to fight off an attack from your mother." He placed his hand over mine, making me look back up at him, "Steph...you started to claw at the sheets next to you, shredding them. You would have shredded into yourself if I hadn't-" He stopped, a small flush that I might never have noticed before creeping along his cheeks.

I dropped my phone, and slipped my hand out of his and onto his chest, "If you hadn't what...Isaac?"

He sighed, looking at my hand and then my face, "I just pulled you into me and let you cry it out...it actually helped me, too."

"You suffer from memories in your sleep?" He nodded, and I moved closer, snaking my hand around his waist. "From someone who knows? I am so sorry…"

He chuckled lightly, his chest reverberating with the sound and his breath brushing at the hairs on the top of my hair, "I just told you you helped me...don't apologize."

I pushed away, sitting up with a small laugh, "I was saying that I was sorry you even had them, you dork. Geeze, don't be so literal."

He turned onto his back, looking at me strangely, "Well someone woke up with an extra side of snark this morning."

I rolled my eyes, getting up and to my duffel bag, "Get used to it, my internal wit shall henceforth be external for all to hear!" I pulled out a pair of running pants and a loose v-neck. "You might want to go and get dressed by the way, our training starts in half an hour."

* * *

"Tell me again why were are waiting for Erica when Scott is probably still seething from the slights we gave him yesterday?" I grumbled in the back seat of Derek's car, which ever so conveniently had darkened glass windows, since we were sitting outside of the school at the moment. "Or rather why Isaac and I need to be here when just the other night you were yelling at us for being in town? You know, with our fugitive status and whatnot."

Derek sighed, "Because I am going to need both of you when we go to get Boyd. I have a feeling that Scott is going to try and stop him."

"And you think that after training us all of two days is going to make us even close to being able to stand up to him? He's had _months_ to work out his abilities, we've had _days._" I looked to Isaac for help, but he has been acting strange today, from his cocky smile to his newfound love for wearing a leather Jacket along with Erica.

He shrugged, looking to Derek, "Maybe he just thinks we're stronger since we're all together in a pack while he's by himself."

I crossed my arms looking over at Stiles's jeep, which was parked near where we were, "I highly doubt you could classify Scott as an Omega." Derek turned around, giving me a slightly impressed and slightly suspicious look. "What? I'm cooped in a subway station all day and I just became a werewolf: I did some reading." I kept my heartbeat steady, not wanting the alpha to know that Stiles has been catching me up with all that he and Scott know. He doesn't know I took the Bite yet, but that's mainly because I don't want him to tell Scott. Other than Isaac, Stiles is the only one I really trust.

Before Derek could say anything, Erica came out of the school among the throng, several boys chasing her down as she smiled to herself, I shook my head and smiled slightly as she got into the car and turned to us, "How was your day, fugitives?"

"Not nearly as...entertaining as I can see yours was," Isaac said, smirking over at all of the boys looking at the now moving car dejectedly.

"Well, it's funny what a little Bite can do along with some Leather," she said, pulling down her mirror so that she can fix her bright red lipstick. "I mean you should try it, Steph, well, once you can go back to school that is."

"I think I'd rather be caught in Coach's office with Greenberg." I said with a sarcastic smile, not enjoying what the bite has been doing to my friend. I looked over to Isaac, hoping he would enjoy the humor in my comment, but instead I saw that his eyes were darkened and he had this murderous look on his face.

Derek spoke up, and the look was gone as soon as it appeared, "Can we focus? Scott is going to try and stop Boyd from accepting the Bite, so I'm going to need Steph and Erica to detain Stiles while Isaac and I go talk to Boyd."

I looked over at Isaac, "What is this preschool? Why the boy-boy girl-girl team up?"

"Because I need you to make sure that if he gets the jump on one of you, since he's had experience with our kind, that you two will look out for each other," Erica looked slightly offended, but I nodded, understanding that I was really going to keep Erica from having too much fun with her new 'seduction' powers.

"Okay, fine, so are you dropping us off at Boyd's and then we'll meet at the ice rink, or are we going to need to stop at the station and get the car?" I asked, looking for any signs that I'd come to recognize as the way to the station.

Derek shook his head, "I'll drop you off there and you two can wait somewhere out of sight until Stiles shows up. When you finish you can text Isaac and he'll pick you up while I'm with Boyd."

"Got it." I turned to Isaac, my phone in my hand, "Can you tell me which of the two numbers is yours? I still haven't labeled you and Stiles on my phone."

He smiled, leaning forward so that we could both see the screen, I couldn't help but think that he was trying to mark me with his scent as his arm brushed against mine, which set a whiff of it toward me. I took in the smell of sawdust and cologne, barely able to register him pointing to his number, labeling it in a haze when he backed away. When I looked up, Erica was looking at me with an amused smirk on her face, Isaac's arm still really close to mine. I had no idea what was going on with him, but I knew that I definitely didn't like it. I sighed, looking out the window and trying to get Isaac's smell out of my mind until we were dropped off at Boyd's.

As we stood around the side of the house, looking out for Stiles' shitty ass jeep, Erica finally decided to break the silence. "You're a terrible liar, you know that?" I turned to her, raising an eyebrow, "Oh, you know, the whole innocent, 'there's nothing going on with me and Isaac' crap you told me the other day. You know, before either of us had been bitten?"

"It wasn't a lie, the only connection we had was that we both saw his dad's body and I was helping him to not get caught." I ran a hand through my hair, "But then again, that didn't work out since Whittemore is a Jackass."

"Don't even try it," She laughed, "I've been dealing with the scent all day, so I know that you are lusting for him."

"I...am not _lusting…._" I falter, not sure if I should tell her about the pull I've been feeling when it comes to him.

"Okay, so maybe not _lust_, but there definitely some _wanting_ going on there, don't deny it." She said with a knowing smirk, "I mean, I know you better than any of them."

I opened my mouth to reply, but then Stiles showed up, making me sigh instead, "Show time."

We waited for him to get to the door, watching him knock on the door, "Hey, Boyd?" He looked to the street, knocking again, "Hey, Boyd? You in there? It's Stiles." After he got no reply, he turned to leave, only to see the two us us, "Oh-wow." He breathed, looking at me with a shocked expression as Erica laughed a little.

"What are you doing here, Stiles?"

He looked from on to the other of us, he gaze staying on Erica when he finished, "Uh….nothing. I was just looking for, um...uh…" He sighed.

Erica looked at him with a pitying expression, "Boyd?"

He pointed to her, "Yea...yes. Boyd." He stared at her for a minute, making her smile.

"You know what you're doing right now, that's kind of funny?" She moved her head, making his gaze follow her, "You're only looking in my eyes."

He looked at her confused, "That's funny?" he looked to me, "How is that even remotely funny?" I shrugged, letting her continue, but knowing I would have to cut this short soon.

"Well, yea. Because it's that kind of look where you're trying to look anywhere other than my eyes, or hey, even Steph's eyes, but you want to, don't you?" She leaned forward, pushing him against the door, allowing me to slip to his car and fiddle with it. "You want a nice, long, hard-" She was right against him, her face close to his, "Look."

Stiles looked to me only to see me shrug my hands hiding the part I just jacked from the jeep. "Not really. No."

"Oh." She backed away, giving me the opportunity to slip the piece into her hand. "So it's...just my eyes?"

Stiles nodded, "Yes. Both of you...you have beautiful eyes."

I caught a sense of elation waft off Erica for a split second- she's had a crush on stiles since freshman year- before she smirked, "I have beautiful everything."

I closed my eyes in shame, making Stiles smile tightly, "And a newfound self confidence. Congratulations, Erica. I should get going though…" he looked to me slightly shocked as I shook my head sadly.

Erica smiled, pushing him against the door, "Oh, you're not going anywhere."

He looked at each of us, "Why not?"

"Well aside from the obvious, my little Robin…" I said with a twinge of guilt when he looked at me betrayed.

"You're having car trouble." Erica finished, backing away and showing him the piece I took. I had no idea what the cylindrical piece did, or what the wires attached to, but it looked important, and judging by the look on Stiles' face, I was right. Before I could stop her, she punched him in the face with it, slipping the part into his hoodie pocket.

"Woah, was that necessary?! Derek said _detain_ him not _maim _him." I crouched next to him, looking at the already forming bruise.

"Relax, he'll be fine, now just...help me put in the dumpster out back and we'll text your boyfriend."

"He is _not_ my boyfriend." I huffed, as I lifted Stiles up and slung him over my shoulder.

"Yea, yea, you know, Denial isn't just a river in Egypt." She smirked, showing me the dumpster.

"Shut up before I beat you up with Stilinski's unconscious body and I don't care how excessive that would be."

* * *

We stood outside the doors after Scott came in, Derek in front of us with Isaac between me and Erica. Scott walked up to Boyd per the supposed plan the boys cooked up for this little meeting. He was driving the Zamboni as the other teen addressed him.

"Boyd. I just wanna talk." Boyd ignored him, still driving, "Hey, come one, Boyd, please. Did Derek tell you everything? And I don't just mean going out of control on the full moons. I Mean _everything._"

Boyd stopped driving, looking down at Scott, "He told me about the hunters."

"And that's not enough for you to say no?" Scott looked as if he couldn't believe why we were all saying yes to Derek, "Whatever you want, there's other ways to get it."

Boyd looked at him, angry, "I just don't want to sit alone at lunch everyday." I looked down, feeling kind of bad that I never noticed how lonely he was. Isaac saw this, and gave my hand a squeeze which made me relax as we made our way across the ice as Scott spoke.

"If you're looking for friends, you can do a lot better than Derek."

Derek, who was still in front of us, but to the side, spoke his hands behind his back, "That really hurts, Scott." Scott turned, looking at all of us, as Derek motioned to us briefly as he continued, "I mean, if you're going to review me, at least take a consensus. Erica, how's life been for you since we met?"

She tilted her head, playing with her hair, her other hand resting on the side of her waist opposite it, "Hm..in a word?" She looked at Scott, a dark look on her face, "Transformative." She dropped her arms and flashed her fangs for dramatic flair, making me scoff as Derek stared at Scott still.

"Isaac?"

I turned to him as he slouched slightly, his hands in his pockets. There was a smirk on his face as he tilted his head towards Scott, "Well, I'm a little bummed about being a fugitive, but other than that," His smile widened, "I'm great."

I crossed my arm across my chest, the other's elbow in my hand as I inspected my claws, "Steph?" I looked at Derek, a smile playing on my lips as I looked sidelong at Scott.

"Well, Scottles, I'll admit that it was a little rocky at first, but I kinda have to second what Lahey over here said." I shrugged my shoulders with a smile, a sorry not sorry expression in my eyes.

Scott held a hand in front of himself, looking to Derek, "Okay, hold one. This isn't exactly a fair fight."

"Then go home, Scott." I looked at Derek, though he wore a mask of indifference, I could sense that there was a part of him that didn't want to have to do this.

There was a crack and I turned back to Scott, dropping into a defensive stance, my vision reddening and my fangs bared. Scott had wolfed out, punching a crater the size and depth of his wrist into the ice. He tilted his head up, his yellow eyes intend on Derek.

"I meant fair for them."

"Please, it's three of us against you, we got this." I scoffed, as Isaac and Erica lunged for him.

Scott grabbed Isaac and threw him across the rink, making him hit the wall and slump down. I tried to get to him, but slipped in my haste and he tossed me into Isaac as he approached. I hit him right in the stomach, our bodies creating a 'T' before I got up, helping him up and pseudo skating over to Scott as Erica got kicked into the Zamboni where Boyd just sat and watched. I moved away from the machine, nodding to Isaac as he slammed Scott into it and then slid him over to me. I watched as Scott crouched on the ice, his claws etchign small lines into it as he slowed himself down. I hammered my fist into his shoulder blades knocking him down only to have him sweep my legs out from under me and slid my prone body into Isaac, distracting him so that he could tackle the taller teen into the ground. I struggled to stand, but Erica, who had been on Scott's back, got thrown into the Zamboni and onto me.

I stood up, standing next to Isaac as we both tried to get a few swipes as him, but he somehow managed to dodge both of our attacks, slashing us in the stomachs with one swipe of his claws. He clasps both of his hands and slams them into Isaac's back knocking him down while I circled him. Erica moved to hit him, but she was once again slammed into the Zamboni and falls to the ground. Taking my chance, I spun around to kick him, only to have him catch my foot and throw me onto Isaac with a groan. He shifted back to his human form, angry he had to do this.

"Don't you get it? He's not doing this for you." He pointed to Derek as I tenderly got off of Isaac, sitting up slightly, my hands at my ribs. "He's just adding to his own power, okay? It's all about him. He makes you feel like he's giving you some kind of gift when all he's done is turn you into a bunch of guard dogs!"

He took Erica and Isaac in each of his hands and slid them over to Derek. As I struggle to stand and hit him, he pulls me up by my shirt, "Stop trying to defend him, Steph! He just put you into a fight he _knew_ you were going to lose! He just wants to prove that he has power!" He threw me then, Isaac standing up so he could catch me only to fall back into a sitting position when did, the two of us sliding back a little as Derek sidestepped us, looking to Boyd.

"It's true." he said, a small smile on his face, "It is about power."

As Derek beat the crap out of Scott, Isaac helped me up, following Erica to the edge of the rink, "Please tell me that we didn't just get our asses handed to us for nothing." I gasped, popping my right shoulder back into place.

"See for yourself," Isaac smirked, looking past Derek, who had evidently joined us, and to Boyd who was standing over Scott.

"You don't wanna be like them." Scott groaned, struggling to sit up.

Boyd looked down, "You're right," He lifted up his shirt revealing an already healing bite mark on his waist, "I wanna be like you."

As he joined us and we left, I couldn't help but think two things.

_1. Derek has a waist fetish and_

_2. I really need to invest in a leather jacket._

* * *

_And there you have it, folks! Some Stephanie action within the major plot again! Hope you liked it, and if you did let me know how I'm doing with a fave, follow, or even maybe a review! You're responses keep me happy and writing! :)_

_Lots of Love,_

_~Gwen_


	7. Repercussions

_Wow, guys I've had this story up for a few days and I already have three encouraging reviews, 4 faves and Seven followers! Thanks so much to ImagineBetter3 and SurreyShannon for your kind words, and I'm glad you guys are enjoying it! Also thank you to all who have followed! Anyway, so I finally had some teasing and prodding at Steph from Erica about Mr. Lahey, and Scott knows she's a werewolf! Let's see what those things lead to, huh?_

_**Disclaimer: I don't own Teen Wolf, but I really wish that I could.**_

* * *

Chapter 7: Repercussions

"AAAGH! Oh...that one hurt a little," I winced in sympathy as I popped Isaac's wrist back into place, falling back onto his bed, with a groan as I jarred at my own wounds.

Derek had shut himself in his room after his pissing match with Scott and so I helped Erica and Isaac with the healing process, thankful that Stiles told me about repositioning broken bones to heal them. Erica had left for home a little while ago, having Boyd drive her home. I tried to sit back up, but couldn't, since I couldn't replace the broken ribs from when Scott threw me at Isaac, I was only met by severe pain. Luckily I had popped my dislocated shoulder back into place, and fixed my own wrist so that I could help Erica and Isaac.

"Here, just lay back down, I'll fix it for you." I looked at Isaac from my half upright position with a sceptical expression, "What? I promise I won't bite."

"Such a reassuring promise from Mr. 180 who also has claws and super strength," I groan, as I fell back down, my insides protesting. "Alright...just...try to be gentle."

"Well, no promises there…" He chuckled when I gave him a withering look, "Kidding! Just, hold still."

"No promises there…." I grumbled, flushing as he slid his hands up my shirt, "Is that completely necessary, Lahey?"

"Well, I need to feel for the breaks, and it's easier without all of the rises and falls that are in the knitting of your sweater you insisted on changing into."

I bolted upright, pushing through the pain with an annoyed growl, not liking this teasing game he was up to. Throwing the sweater off, I sat in front of him in just a sports bra and gym shorts, making him look shocked, which made me give him a smirk of my own._Two can play at this Game Lahey..._"If you wanted me to take my clothes of, you should have just asked. Now:" I pointed to my bruised ribs that were fading to a really ugly brown-yellow as they tried to heal, "Fix me so I can go talk to Derek."

He face fell back into that cocky mask he'd been wearing all day. "If you insist," He pushed up on the rip rough push, forcing it back in place with an excruciating crack.

"mhhm….ahaaah" I groaned, falling onto my back, "What the _hell_ was that?!"

"I was fixing it." He matter of factly, his eyes flashing mischievously. _Oh...So he _wants_ me to kill him violently...I get it now. _

"I'll remember that next time I have to reset any of your vertebrae." I snapped, wincing as the torn tissue started to heal itself. "Okay, two more...and please be gentler this time?"

"Well now that your snarky bravado is gone…" He leaned forward, his hand resting gently on the bed next to my waist.

"Oh, are we going to talk about people and their stupid bravados now? Cause, boy, do I have some notes for you." I looked up at him and flashed my eyes with a snarl, "Maybe if you stopped trying to be annoying ass fusion of Jackson and Derek, I won't be such a Snarky bitch to you: did you ever think of that?"

He didn't say anything, just lifted the hand to my right, his hand brushing along the skin before shifting the replace the next rib, making me gasp at the light twinge of pain. He moved his face closer to mine with a slight smirk before brushing the wisps of my hair out of my face. I held my breath, not sure how this was fixing what I just yelled at him about, but now really wanting to do anything about it either.

His smirk widened slightly, as he moved his lips to my ear. "It's crossed my mind."

I stared at him, suppressing the flush that is trying to force it's way onto my cheeks, not wanting him to know the effect he had on me. My heart was racing in spite of my attempts, though, so who knows how successful I was.

"Well...work on it..." I said slowly, taking a gulp of breath before continuing, "Now find the last one and _gently_ set it in so that I can go see what this whole pissing match we had with Scott was about." I looked at him, noticing he was still expecting something, "_Please." _

With a final snap he complied, making me say some very unladylike things that will never be repeated, but involved things of daunting size being shoved up a certain werewolves ass and him being able to taste it.

* * *

"Stiles, for the seventh time: It wasn't because I didn't trust you!" I groaned, taking a swing at the punching bag Derek had me set up after we had talked. "If anything it was because I didn't trust your friendship with Scott." I dropped my stance, stopping the bag as it swung towards me. "That sounded profoundly less bitchy in my head."

"Yea well, it also would have been profoundly less bitchy of you to stop Erica from hitting me with pieces from my own car." Stiles snapped. I smirked as I heard him mutter softly, "That bitch."

"Well, you do know that that is actually true now that she is part wolf, right?" I smirked, as he groaned.

"You know I'm not sure if I like this new Stephanie, or the quiet and internally snarky Stephanie better." He whined, undoubtedly making some entertaining look or another.

"Well, as someone who uses sarcasm and snark as a basic setting in discussion, I'd say the former." I smiled, making him laugh in a-surprise surprise-sarcastic manner before sighing slightly.

"I just hope you know what you're doing…being in Derek's pack and everything."

"If anything, I am just trying to make sure that the other three are okay. I mean, you and Scott know me enough to know that that is coded into my personality and won't change with a stupid werewolf chomping on my side." I smiled, punching at the bag some more and considering asking Boyd or Erica if they could get me some weights and a bluetooth piece. I thought about all the other things I needed though and just turned into the phone. "Hey, If I gave you money and a list of random things would you get it for me?"

"Uh...sure, if you want I can just pick you up and we can go tonight, I'm picking up my jeep from getting the starter you tore out replaced." There was no malice in his voice, since I'd already apologized for that, but I still felt a twinge of guilt.

"I am sorry about that...if you want I can try and contribute towards the repairs? Luckily I am the type of girl who didn't want my Mother having control of my bank account and request that Deaton pay me in cash." I took the phone in my hand, relaxing my shoulder, "And why would I have you pick me up somewhere when your dad is has an active search out there for me?"

"Right…" Stiles drifted out, sighing slightly, "Okay, well I'll get my jeep and I'll text you later."

"Sounds good." I smiled, walking from the bag to my car to shower.

"Okay, talk to you later,"

"See ya, Stilinski."

I ended the call, grabbing my toiletry bag, a towel, and a change of clothes. Unfortunately, we were still working on the bathroom, so our shower was still under development, making my shower military in length. When I got out, I plugged in my mini dryer, blowing it to be dry enough for me to leave if I needed to. Brushing my hair into a loose pony, some hair escaping to frame my face, I checked how I looked. I had slipped into an embroidered grey tank top with a pair of dark skinny jeans and a navy zip-up hoodie. I had on a pair of knee high leather lace-up boots, not wanting to walk around the station bare-foot. When I got all of my things back to the car, I looked to see the light in Derek's office room off and that Isaac was asleep in his car, and decided to go take a walk around the less occupied parts of town.

I snuck up the stairs and out into the street, looking around for places where I could hide from any prying eyes. I never heard back from Stiles, so I guessed that he either couldn't get his car or did and went to sleep. I didn't really mind so much until I found myself walking around where Isaac's dad had died, a sense of danger suddenly hitting me. I looked around, trying to figure out what was going on when I was slammed into an alleyway, my back cracking into the dumpster. I I felt something slash up my side, but when I moved to fight, it was gone, the hint of a tale slinking behind. I grunted, holding my side, noticing I wasn't healing.

"Perfect…" I muttered, knowing I was now going to have to go back to the station and get this looked at. "Well...this will be a little hard to explain to Derek…"

Of course when I got home, Derek was the least of my worries. Approaching my car, I was met by a very suspicious and very smug Isaac with his arms crossed. I huffed, not wanting him to see my injury and moved my sweater over the wound and placing my hands on my hips.

"Can I help you? Or are you going to brutally reset my ribs again?" I snapped, trying to give the normal bite to my wounds, but not having the strength in me to fully do it.

"No...but maybe you went and got that elsewhere." He smirking at my undoubtedly disleveled appearance.

"Oh, shove off, I was just going for a...for a…." I struggled, feeling woozy and unable to breath before everything faded to black.

* * *

"Steph...are you awake?" I tried to flutter my eyes open, my vision dark and blurred. "Steph can you hear me?"

I groaned lightly, lifting my arm to my head, "yea...I can Der-ick?" I froze, fearful of what he was going to say.

"Great is she losing her memory too?"

"Can it, Lahey, I was just surprised to find Derek hovering over me since I distinctly remembered being aggravated with you at the moment I was last conscious." I snapped, sitting up slowly, "Something that hasn't changed...unlike my location…and company..."

Derek was sitting on the edge of my bed with me laying next to him and Isaac was leaning on the doorframe, Erica and Boyd standing inside. I looked to Derek trying to convey that I needed to talk to him alone for a minute. Luckily, he got it, because he held out a hand to help me up, standing as I did.

"Okay guys, get ready for training, I'm going to go catch Steph up with what we are doing."

They all left and I followed Derek to his 'office' so that we could have some privacy. As we reached the stares I caught Isaac smirking at me mumbling something about getting scolded for breaking the rules. I made some gestures at him that only succeeded in making him laugh at me before joining Erica and Boyd in setting up some sort of obstacle path. I stood next to the door when Derek let me in first, waiting for him to yell at me. I knew it was coming, it was written on his face when he opened the door. Instead though, he just sighed, sitting on his bed and holding his temple with one hand.

"Do you have any idea how hard it is to keep you hidden from the police without you running off every single time I let you out of my sight?"

"Well judging by the fact that I'm-" I stopped at the look in his eyes. "Very."

"That's right. And tonight you go out and get attacked by the thing that probably is what has you and Isaac in hiding!" _And there's the yelling I was waiting for. _"I had to drain your side of venom, Stephanie! You were lucky you passed out, or you would be in some severe agony right now! Stop playing impetulant child and follow orders! You are 16, not a four year old sneaking outside to play in the yard. If you get caught, you get arrested. And then I can't help you."

"You and Stiles worked pretty damn hard to bust Isaac out. I'm sure you could manage." I snapped, holding my hand up as he opened his mouth, "NO! It's my turn to talk this time damn it! I'm not going to sit here and have you yell at me like the four year old you say I'm not. Do you know that my mom didn't even let me have a room?" I crossed the room look in an accusatory stance, " I was stuck in a closet that was the size of the beds you gave us. I wasn't allowed to leave it unless it was for school or work. Then you tell me the Bite is gonna help me and make me more free and I'm still locked away and unable to go anywhere! I am getting stir crazy, Derek! I need to get out every now and again! Okay, so yes, I happened to get attacked by whatever this thing is, but now I know to be more alert which is more than I can say about your supposed training." I panted, holding my side that I only just now realized was still a little sore.

Derek just sat there a look of complete annoyance on his face as I stood there waiting for him to answer. "You know, I was afraid this was going to happen."

"Oh really? And what is that oh wise leader?" I scowled, not really sure where this newfound bravery was coming from, but blatantly happy about it.

"Well to put it simply, if Stiles and Scott were to morph into one person it would be you." I smirked as he sighed, clearly having been dreading an instance of this happening.

"Hey, if you ask me that's the least of your worries. I mean at least I'm not trying to create a Jackson/Derek or trying to become a walking lust dispenser." I shrugged, trying to add a lighter note to our screaming match so that I didn't have to suffer questions from the nosy commity outside.

"What? Nevermind, just…get out there for training. Today's session is going to be you guys trying to knock me down. You are going to start next to Isaac, I told Erica to find somewhere high to hide out, and Boyd is just observing today."

"Poor guy…" I mutter, leaving the room and flipping off the stairs like I've been practicing: Like I said, I'm bored being cooped up. "Okay, losers, we're gonna be lifting off in the five seconds it's going to take Derek to either walk down or, jump off them like I did."

Erica rolled her eyes as I joined Isaac, who was smirking at me with that annoying look on his face. She slunk off towards the beginning of the train while Isaac and I stood at the end of the room and in front of the little obstacles they had set up. I dropped into an offensive stance, waiting for Isaac to go first, using his movements as a sort of distraction. He stood tall, taking a deep breath before bolting straight for him. As he flipped over a cart, I moved slowly, jumping up a pillar and jumping to and fro, catching Derek toss Isaac after he followed my idea at the pillar in front of Derek. It was really amusing really, he had jumped and Derek just grabbed his throat and tossed him on the ground. I adjusted my path, pushing hard off of one nearby, moving to land at his feet to sweep them from under him. Unfortunately, Derek anticipated this and grabbed my leg, tossing me onto Isaac.

We kept at it for about an hour, Isaac doing the same thing over and over again, while I tried different tactics. Every time, Derek caught us and tossed us onto our backs. Boyd kept looking on with an amused look on his face and Erica was still no where to be seen. Finally, I just decided to do a completely different approach. I followed closely behind Isaac and when he jumped, I jumped up onto the train, hiding behind the pillar. Isaac when on the floor again and Erica got tossed when she tried to get on his back, taking my usual spot. As he turned to them, I jumped, my arm hooking around his neck with my claws at his throat and digging into his ribcage. Just as I was about to smirk in victory, he reached back, wrapping his arm around my waist and tossing me into Isaac again.

I rolled off of him, making the blue-eyed boy the middle of the three injured Betas. I sat cross-legged on the floor, holding the back of my head while Isaac was leaning on the arm closest to me, with his head turned into his shoulder and his legs half under bent. Erica was just propped on her elbows with her feet on the ground and her knees bent. Derek walked over to us, not a scratch on him and an agitated look on his face.

"Does anyone wanna try not being completely predictable? I mean at least Steph chang-" He was interupted by Erica leaping into his arms, her legs around his waist and hungrily attacking his lips. Surprisingly he wraps a arm around her waist and kisses her back for a few heated seconds. Isaac raised an eyebrow at me, but I smirked, pointing to them as Derek shoves her back onto the ground. "That's the last time you do that."

Erica growled, her lips curled in a snarl, "Why? Because I'm a beta?" the last word spat out.

"What did I tell you? Wanna be lust magnet." I laughed.

Derek gave me a look making me shut up, but Isaac still smirked, "No, because I have someone else in mind for you." I raised an eyebrow, but noticed he was subtely looking at Boyd who had apparently walked up behind us.

Isaac shifted, trying to get his back into a more comfortable positions with a wince "Are you done? Cuz i got about a hundred bones that need a few hours to heal."

Derek gives him a look of fake sympathy, walking towards us, "Come here," He takes Isaacs hand, who goes to thank him, but then Derek flicks his wrist with a few sickening cracks and pulls the arm behind his head. "I hundrey and one. YOu think I'm teaching you to fight? Huh?" He pushes Isaac back, making his head fall into my lap as moved forward to catch him. We don't look at him, Isaac cradling his arm, while I brush the hair from his forehead. "Look at me!" we do and he speaks slowly, still angry, "I'm teaching you how to survive!"

Isaac tilts his head up in defiance, "If they waned us dead why aren't they coming for us now? What are they waiting for?"

Derek looked down at him, a look of doubt shadowing his face. I don't know. But they're planning something. And you-and steph- especially, know that's not our only problem. Whatever that thing is that killed Isaac's father, I think it killed someone else last night." He stood up, watching us as he walked to the subway cars. "Until I find out what it is, you all need to learn everything that I know. As fast as I can teach you."

And then he shoved his way into a care and swung on into the car adjacent to it, leaving us all to try and fix our injuries. I sighed, standing up and falling into a brige to crack my vertebrae back into place before looking to Boyd.

"Can you look after her injuries and get her home?" I know that Derek has some plan or another for tonight, but I think he just needs to cool off. We'll text you when he's ready for us." He nodded, helping Erica up and out of the room, leaving me with Isaac. "Okay, come on, tell me where you need to have bones reset, and I'll _try_ not to exact my rib's revenge on you."

* * *

I was sitting on my bed, bouncing a ball off of the ceiling and trying to alleviate any boredom. Derek told me to expect a text from them after the game was over and they'd talked to Stiles about whatever attacked me. Personally, I was considering myself lucky to have happened across it twice and live to tell the tale, though I didn't go unscathed the second time around. Isaac was tucked away somewhere avoiding me after I had reset his bones. Though all I did was fix them, no unnecessary force required. I sighed, looking at my phone with a frown. Stiles had texted me about two hours ago sarcastically thanking me for giving him the heads up on the Derica interrogation. I pushed off the bed, going into Isaac's room, my hand over my eyes.

"Hey Isaac?" I called, not looking just to be safe.

"What do you want? And why the hell do you have you hand over your eyes?" He said, a small smile in his voice.

"Well I wanted to make sure I didn't walk in on you naked or something." I dropped my hand, frowning at his smirk. "I'm worried about Derek and at the others."

"They said they'd be back when they were done talking to Stiles. You know how he likes to avoid questions in class, let alone Derek." He shrugged, leaning against the wall in next to me.

"Two hours is a long time to try and get something out of someone...even Stiles." I said, running a hand through my hair with a sigh "Derek would have gotten what he wanted by now…"

"Well, what do you want to do about it? It's not like we've had a chance to get anyone's numbers outside of each other." He looked at me as I whipped out my phone. "Except for Erica."

"We _did _used to be best friends before she became a hormone magnet." I said, putting the phone to my ear. It rang five times before going to Voicemail. "Nothing. I"m going." I said, turning to go out of the car.

"Steph do you _really _think that's the best idea?" Isaac's hand lashed out and grabbed my wrist making me look at him. I was momentarily silent, shocked to see the old concerned him return, but shook it off.

"I've gone through my whole life thinking my choices haven't really been the best idea, Isaac." I said, glaring at him before yanking my hand out and leaving. "The only difference is that now I'm willing to face the consequences."

* * *

_There you have it folks! I hope you like it, I'm not too fond of bits of it, but it's a chapter, and I have teasing moments of teaseness between Steph and Isaac! Fave, Follow, Review, just let me know if you like it! :)_

_Lots of Love, _

_~Gwen_


	8. Reflection of What Lies Within

_Thanks to all who are following, faving and commenting! I'm glad that this story is being liked! Don't really have much to say outside of how proud I am of my little Stephy going against Derek's orders (again) to help her friends! lol anyway..on to the chapter._

_**Disclaimer: I don't own Teen Wolf or any of it's characters, they belong to Jeff, but I do own Stephanie and her story, so no stealing her ;)**_

* * *

Chapter 8: Reflection of What Lies Within

I ran as fast as I could, getting to the school within minutes, scanning the now empty field for any sign of Derek, Erica and Stiles. Boyd had texted me saying that Derek told him to leave after the game, so he was home and I had one less person to worry about. I scanned the parking lot, noticing that there were three cars there: Derek's camaro, Stiles' Jeep, and a small car that looked to have someone still in it. I slipped forward slightly, seeing that it was Lydia, a sort of agitated and saddened expression on her face. Taking a couple of seconds, I weighed out my options: I could go talk to Lydia and risk being turned in in order to find out where my friends were, or I could go looking for them myself and risk finding them too late. Sighing, I walked around the car and leaned forward, tapping lightly on the window. She opened it, tear streaks down her face and confusion in her eyes.

"Hey, Lydia...I'm really sorry to bother you, but I need your help." She gave me a look and I just continued, "Have you seen Stiles at all tonight?"

"Yes." She snapped, looking through her windshield, and her grip tight on her steering wheel. He left me two hours ago saying he would be back in five minutes to talk." She looked a me, a hurt expression on her face, "I didn't even want to talk to him, you know. But he insisted, saying he would be right back. Right. Back."

I shifted uneasily, "I'm sure he has a good reason...in fact, I'll yell at him as soon as I find him." She smiled slightly, making me bite my lip. "But I do need you to keep our little meeting between us...I'm kinda still laying low for a bit…"

"It's not like anyone's going to believe me anyway…" She muttered, making me wince as I started to walk away. "Everyone thinks I'm crazy anyway...even Stiles…"

"Yea, well...I don't" I turned around, a small smile on my face, "I think you're just...trying to recover from that psycho attacking you."

I ran into the school, hoping that she would leave and get home safe so that I could help the others and not have to worry about her on top of it. I made my way to the best middle point I could think of, standing in a hallway of the second floor. After hearing some splashing, I made my way to the pools, running to the balcony. From there I could see Stiles holding Derek up in the 8-foot deep water, the Alpha's arm around his shoulder. Derek wasn't moving while Stiles was struggling to keep the two of them up, his breathing very labored as they looked in front of them with a mix of anger and fear. Following their gaze, I was able to see why.

Crawling towards the edge of the water was a large man-sized lizard with dark green scales and an independently mobile tail. I forced myself to calm down, knowing it was the thing that killed Isaac's dad and attacked me in the alley. One of it's hands dipped into the water, it's crystalline claws extended. Stiles shouted as the thing hissed and back towards the wall away from the pool.

"Wait! Did you see that? I don't think it can swim."

We both turned to the lizard, but my gaze fell on Stiles' phone at the same time I heard Derek shout, "NO, no, no! Don't even think about it!"

_Too late…_ I smirked wolfing out and lunging at the creature to give Stiles the time he needed to call Scott. _I won't be able to take this thing out on my own, and you send away your pack, well the useful half of your back. _

We tumbled a couple of times before I rolled into a defensive crouch and this lizard thing started to slash at me. Not wanting to revisit the pain from last time, I evaded them, slashing and clawing at its arms and sides whenever I could. The main goal was to try and push it into the water and drown it, but I had to wait for Stiles to get his phone first, so I was pushing him to the other edge. When I heard Stiles splashing away, I leapt over the back of it, trying to grab its talk so that I could throw it in. However, the tail grabbed me by the ankle first, and a claw scratched me in the back before I could get my bearings. I started to convulse and shake out of my own will, my body slowly shutting down. I growled, trying to look at Derek and Stiles to see if Scott saved them, but all I could hear was double slamming noise which only made me assume that they were pulled out of the water before I as tossed to the other side of the gym.

_I suppose this is what I get for not listening to Derek's orders…_

* * *

I awoke with a start, my muscles jerking with an overactive reaction to my movements. I gripped my blanket trying to gain some air, Derek and Isaac burst into the car, Isaac leaping onto the bed, and looking at me concerned. I slumped forward slightly, glad that Derek was okay, but my eyes wideing when I noticed Erica wasn't there.

"Stiles and Erica? Are they-?" I looked between the two of them worriedly. Isaac Jumped when Derek snapped, making me steel myself.

"No thanks to you, Yes. Scott got to us shortly after your little suicide attempt." He growled, his arms crossed. "How many times are you and I going to have this discussion Steph? Because I have to tell you, I'm getting tired of having it."

I growled, ignoring the warning look Isaac was giving me, "As many time as it takes because I'm not going to sit and twiddle my thumbs when my friends could be in danger, or worse! What would you guys have done if I hadn't shown up? Maybe Stiles would have been able to get his phone, but what if this thing had gotten him? I made a possibility into a reality and I'm not going to sit here and be yelled at when it could have been the deciding factor on whether you guys lived or died!" I jumped from the bed and ran out of the car, ignoring both of them yelling for me to come back. I went to the punching bag I'd been using during the days, and just let loose on it. Kicking and swinging at it with reckless abandon, all sorts of thoughts flurrying in my head.

_Stay inside, don't do anything unless I tell you to. _Kick.

_I'm doing what's best for you to survive. _Double- Punch.

_You're just a silly little girl what could you do? _Slash.

_Did you really think people would start to treat you differently when you became a werewolf? That people would care? _Punch, Kick.

_As if anyone would want to be protected by someone who never rose a hand to protect herself for 16 years! He'll never feel the same you know that!_

I growled in a human frustration, delivering one final punch to the bag before it flew into the wall, the chain broken. I stood slouched over slightly, panting for breath as I just stared at it, still needing it, but unable to use it. I fell back into an offensive stance, turning to punch a pillar, but I saw a hand grab my wrist to stop me. I froze, turning my gaze slightly and sighing, I looked into the clear concerned ocean that was Isaac's eyes. I dropped my stance, and stood with my arms crossed, walking to a pillar a little farther away and leaning on it.

"I suppose you're here to tell me that I'm over-reacting and should go beg for forgiveness, since he's been working so hard to help me survive?" I let out a frustrated chuckle thinking back to the one thought that had thrown me over the edge. I'd been avoiding it for essentially the whole time I've been thinking it, not ready for that chapter of my life to implode. I shoved them down again as Isaac walked over while he rubbed at his nose, his other hand in his pocket.

"Well, I wasn't, but if that's the conversation you want then…" he tilted his head in thought, "You're stubborn. You're insolent...and you definitely are way too proud to follow orders, so you should just give up now."

I laughed, a smile unwillingly creeping on my face as I dropped my arms and leaned my head against the pillar, "Is that so?"

"Oh, definitely." He leaned next to me, with a chuckle, "Nah, I was just seeing if…"

"If I was causing damage?" I looked at the new dent in the wall I'd created with the punching back.

"Close, though I'm little late for that, don't you think?" He said, laughing lightly when I shoved his arm playfully, "No...I was coming to see if you were okay."

"Oh….I...I guess that depends on what I am supposed to be okay with…" I sighed, looking at my hands, hating that even with my new lycanthropy they shake when I get nervous or stressed. "I just thought that everything would be different…" I started to wring my hands to distract them from shaking, "I didn't think I would hospitalize my mother, or threaten death on my sister, or kill some guy...or hell! That I could be sitting around in a substation as a fugitive wishing I was at school because at least there I would be doing _something_!" I gulped, refusing to let myself cry. I had made a silent promise to myself that once I got the whole waking up after the Bite situation done, I wasn't going to cry anymore. "It just...it was supposed to be better." I whispered, not looking up from my hands.

Isaac took my hands in his, their shaking stopping immediately, and most likely betraying my feelings. I look up as he stood in front of me, his forehead almost against my own. "Steph…" His expression softened, all the joking from before gone and replaced with sympathy. I took in a breath, being consumed by him, by the sawdust and light cologne that always tells me when he is near. He sighed, as if trying to find the words to say, but shook his head lightly.

"We'll get through this...okay? We can…"

I let out the breath I'd been holding pulling away, if reluctantly, from his grip, "Oh really? _We _can? _We_ will? Isaac I don't even know what's going on with you! One day your being this big cocky asshole, and then the next-" I stopped, turning my back to him, "We can't get through anything until we figure ourselves out first…"

I walked away, pushing back the smaller part of me that wanted to let him console me until he changes back into the stranger who held his face, hiding the one who had my heart without me even realizing it.

* * *

"Okay, so let me get this straight, that thing...that Kanima? Is a result of the Bite taking too much freedom in reflecting the person within?" I was sitting in the train car behind Derek who was sitting on a trunk with a piece of the mirror that Scott apparently used to sent the Kanima away last night. "And we have no idea who it is and if this will even work? What even makes you think it's Jackson Whittemore? I mean his a snake and all, but I never would have thought he was a literal one..."

Derek sighed while Isaac looked at us from where he was sitting near the stairs, we haven't talked since this morning, and I wanted to keep it that way until I could figure out what the hell was going on with us, or even myself.

"It will work, and if not, we'll at least be one step closer to finding out who it actually is." He turned the glass, careful to not let any of the thick toxin that had paralyzed me drip off or onto his own hands. The door opened and we watched as Erica pulled a struggling Jackson down the stairs, Isaac walking over and helping her, each of them holding one of his arms. I stood, leaning my back on the train, closer to Derek now as he spoke, "What happened to you the night of the full moon?"

Jackson stopped struggling, looking at Derek, "What? Nothing. Nothing happened," I listened to his heartbeat, it was confusing because he was lying, but the look on his face said that he thought he was telling the truth. And Jackson wasn't a very good actor…

Derek looked to me as I shrugged, looked back to Jackson, pulling gloves onto his hands"You're lying."

Jackson moved his one hand towards Derek, panicked, "No, wait. I can- I can prove it… I taped myself."

I rolled my eyes as Isaac pulled Jackson back with a judgmental look in his face, "You taped yourself?"

Jackson shoved his face right back into Isaac's, a look of pure hatred in his yes, "Yes. It was the full moon. And maybe while you were curled in the corner having an existential crisis turning into a monster, I was preparing for the so called gift you big, bad Alpha promised me," He looked at Derek then to me, "and what did I get? Nothing. You want proof? Let me get the video."

I scoffed lightly as Derek shook his head, "No. No, I have a better idea." He turned the mirror to glare it in Jackson's face.

"What is that?"

Derek stood, walking up to him as I followed, getting more worried about this the longer it went on. Erica and Isaac smiled, forcing Jackson to his knees, and Derek smiled, "You know, Jackson, you've always been kind of a snake." I scoffed lightly as he used my words, "And everyone knows a snake can't be poisoned by it's own venom."

Jackson struggled to fight against his captors while Derek and I stood over him, the Alpha pouring a drop of the paralytic goop into Jacksons mouth. He started to choke, Erica and Isaac letting him go and standing in front of him with us. Isaac and I watched with our arms crossed while Erica and Derek stood with a relaxed position. Jackson convulsed and choked for a few minutes, finally going still, his eyes darting around in fear. I bit my lip as Derek walked forward and leaned down, talking to Jackson with a small smirk on his face.

You're still a snake, Jackson, just not the one we're looking for." He stood up and walked past us and into the car Erica following him. I looked to Isaac, about to ask what we should do with him, but he was walking to Jackson. When he got to him, he slid his hand down his legs before using them to help him sit down next to the other teen. I walked forward a little, making sure Isaac wouldn't pull anything while Jackson was immobilized. Instead he just smiled with a tilt of his head.

You're still gonna have to do one more thing for us. Well, actually, for me and Steph, here." He turned to me, Jackson look at me terrified.

The next day, I was sitting next to Isaac in English, Scott staring at us as Stiles burst in, falling into his desk, "Dude, I just talked to my dad, who just talked to Jackson, and I've got really terrible, horrible, very, very bad news."

I turned to Isaac and smiled as Scott gestured to the two of us, " Dude, I think I already know." Isaac smiled next to me while I turned around and waved to them.

"Hey boys, did you miss me?"

* * *

Walking around school was interesting after spending the days in the substation. Luckily, since I'm such a dork, I had Erica give me all my make-up work and I turned it in to each of the teachers, most recently Coach who looked at me slightly shocked as I took a seat in the back next to Stiles just as Jackson asked, "What the hell is a Kanima?"

I smiled sweetly, making Stiles jump, "Well, we know you're not it, sweetie, or do you not remeber our little test last night."

Stiles turned to me as Coach dropped the Econ textbook on to the desk, "All right, listen up. A quick warning before begin our review. Some of you, like McCall," He gestured to Scott who looked up at attention, "Might want to start their own study groups, because tomorrow's midterm is so profoundly difficult-" He looked off in a proud moment, "I'm not even too sure I could pass it." He clapped his hands, "Okay, I need a volunteer at the board to answer the first question. Who's got it,huh? Come one, let's go buddy."

I turned back to the group while some random guy went to the board, Jackson was telling them about last night as I pulled my lips to the side, chastising myself for becoming like Isaac with my comment before, "Paralyzed from the neck down. Do you have any idea what it feels like?"

Stiles and I tilted our heads, speaking at the same time, "I'm familiar with the sensation."

Jackson gave us a look, as I rubbed the back of my neck with the memory and Scott talked, confused.

"Wait, why would Derek test you? Why would he think that it's you?"

Jackson shrugged, while I realized that they didn't know that Derek gave him the Bite, "How should I know?"

Stiles looked at me and then Scott, "Wait, do they think it's Lydia?"

I shook my head, not really sure, Derek had told me I was to work strictly as back-up if Scott gave Isaac and Erica any trouble.

Jackson shook his head, "I don't know all I head was her name and somthing about chemistry."

I bit my lip, avoiding Stiles' gaze, _They must think it's her and that's why nothing happened to her when Peter bit here…_

Coach stood over us, yelling at Jackson, "Jackson! Do you have something to share with the rest of the class?"

He struggled, proving my whole he can't act for shits theory from last night, "um- just an undying admiration for my-my coach?" He gestures to Coach he looks down in a mock motion of being touched.

"That's really kind of you." Jackson smiles, while bobbing his head as if he just got away with ass-kissing in class, "No Shut up! Shut it!" Jackson jumped and I clamped my hand over my mouth, giggling at the scene, "Anybody else?"

I realized that they weren't going to trust me until I got the chance to talk to Stiles so I focused on solving the problems I'd copied from the board earlier, still listening to them.

Scott tried to sound diplomatic, making it seem like he was defending Derek, "How do you know it's not her?"

Though true to his ten year crush, Stiles got defensive, "Because I looked into the eyes of that thing, okay? And what I saw was pure evil. When I look into Lydia's eyes, I only see 50% evil. All right, maybe 60. You know, but no more than 40 on a good day."

I looked at him sympathetically as Scott looked at him the same way, "Stiles...that's now a good argument."

He sighed, tapping his pencil on his desk, " I'm aware of that, but I swear it's not her. It can't be all right? Lydia's fine."

I looked up at the board and tapped his shoulder, "Are you sure about that?" I asked as Coach yelled for Lydia's name.

She was panting almost panicked in front of the board, with the words 'Someone help me' written all over it backwards. The class started to laugh at her, making me feel bad for her and hope she remembers what I told her last night. Coach looked on, not sure what to do as she moved to her seat, "Okay then, anybody else want to try answering? This time in English?"

I heard the shutter go off and Scott and Stiles talk about it, but I kept my eyes on Lydia, not wanting to know if she was why I was sitting in school and if Derek wanted to kill her. The rest of the class went by pretty uneventfully and when the bell rang I rushed out, hoping to find Isaac and talk to him about Chemistry before they did anything. I waved to him as I saw him, moving towards him, but Jackson grabbed me, holding a hand in my way cockily. I looked at him questioningly as he smiled, his voice soft, but I know he wanted Isaac to hear us, seeing as he eyes were on him for a second before looking my way.

"I saw you last night, Steph. You didn't want them to do anything to me, did you?" He leaned in, his overbearing cologne making me want to gag, "I do have to say, when I looked at you, I could tell you had the Bite. And I gotta say that it took to you really well" He leaned even closer, whispering in my ear, "If you know what I mean."

I looked at him, disgusted trying to move, but he wouldn't letting me. I turned to see see Isaac looking murderous and I growled softly, _I can protect myself damn it. _I smiled at him briefly _and I'll prove it_ before I turned to Jackson.

"You know, I do?" I leaned forward with a smile, my hand sliding along the back of neck, making him grin as if he won something. "Let me show you, just how well it _took _to me." I twisted, slamming him into the locker and tossing him to the ground. I stood over him as people looked on, "Don't think that because I'm back with a new look that I would still stoop my standards down to narcissistic co-captains like you."

I turned, earning some approving looks from people, but my own smile dropping when Isaac was nowhere in sight.

* * *

_And there you have it folks! Some little bits of reflection and minor jealousy? Tune in to the next chapter to see! _

_Follow, Fave, Review, just let me know if you like it! :D _

_Lots of love, _

_~Gwen_


	9. Pack Against Pack

_Hey all! So we last left off with Isaac and Steph back at school, but what is Derek cooking up and why isn't he telling Steph? Well if you've seen the show, you know but whatever...Hope you enjoy this next chapter!_

_**Disclaimer, I don't own Teen Wolf, but if I did I would have me some Isaac all the time…**_

* * *

Chapter 9: Pack Against Pack

I got into a seat at Harris's class just in time for him to come through, his voice as always, droning on as if he would rather be anywhere else at the moment. I looked for any of my friends, and noticed them all in the front practically mobbing Lydia and I was forced to question what was going on for the second time today.

"Einstein once said, "Two things are infinite: The universe and human stupidity; And I'm not sure about the universe." I myself have encountered infinite stupidity." He grabbed Stiles' shoulders before moving to the front of the class, "So to combat the plague of ignorance in my class, you're going to combine efforts through a round of group experiments. Let's see if two heads are indeed better than one. Or in Mr. Stilinski's case, less than one. Erica, you take the first station. You'll start with -" Nearly everybody rose their hands, making me roll my eyes and Scott's group to look slightly amused. "I didn't ask for volunteers. Put your _hormonal _little hands down. Start with Mr. McCall. All right, next two, McGrath and Lahey, have a seat."

I moved up the the table, Isaac's face clouded with his cocky asshole mask again, I started to measure out ingredient, looking to him worriedly, "You disappeared in the hall earlier...you had me worried…"

He leaned over the table with a shrug, "Yeah, well. I didn't want to interrupt you and _Jackson._ After all, you too looked pretty close."

I rolled my eyes, "Oh yeah, especially when I threw him into a locker and then the floor for even thinking about flirting with me.

"You what?" He looked over, a slightly shocked look on his face.

I smiled twisting the cap back onto the ingredients, "Oh yea, totally turned him down, after throwing him down."

"Why would you…?" He looked so confused that I almost had to laugh.

"I'm not interested in him. I've got someone else in mind for the role he wanted."

He was about to say something when Harris called out for us to switch. I watched as Erica was with Allison and Isaac was with Stiles, Scott next to Lydia. I frowned, not really knowing who was sitting next to me and letting them do all of the work. Instead I contented myself with eavesdropping on Isaac and Stiles, hoping that Stiles didn't say something stupid while he dumped some chemical into the container.

"If you harm one perfect strawberry blonde hair on her head, I'm gonna turn your little werewolf ass into a fur coat and give it to her as a birthday present." _Like that…_ I groaned, stirring things and watching them nervously.

Isaac just leaned against his forearms and looked at him amused, "Really? I've never actually been to one of her big, invite - only birthday parties. I did ask her out once though." _Oh, really now? _My hands clenched almost subconsciously...almost.

Stiles didn't seem interested, "Sounds like the beginning to a heartfelt story. I'm gonna pass, thanks." _Why do we have to be so split? We all just want to get rid of this Kanima thing..._

Isaac continued anyway, "It was the first day of freshman year -"

"And you thought everything was gonna be different for you in high school, but she said no."

Isaac laughed, "Yeah. Yeah, she even laughed. Told me to come back when the bike I rode to school had an engine, not a chain." He looked at Stiles with a half amused, half annoyed expression.

"Mm, unrequited love's a bitch. Maybe you should write about it in English class, you know? Channel all that negative energy." Stiles held his hands in front of him as if he were physically channeling something.

Isaac just shifted his jaw and shook his head, "Nah, I was thinking I'd channel it into killing her. I'm not very good at writing."

Harris called to switch. I was put with Scott as Stiles went to move with Erica, but Isaac got there and Harris spoke up, "If you are trying ot test my patience, Mr. Stilinski, I guarantee it'll be a failing grade.

Stiles turned on me from my space between them, "What are you guys going to do to her?!"

"I don't know." I hissed looking at Isaac with a worried expression, "Derek didn't tell me anything, he doesn't really trust me after my stunt the other night after the game. I'm just here as back up if 'you start anything.'" I said with air quotes and looking at Erica who was messing with Allison and Isaac who was just being a creep with Lydia.

"Do you really think we are going to trust you because you distracted if from killing Derek?" Scott looked at me with a wary expression and I rolled my eyes.

"Don't trust me, but believe me when I say that I went to save Derek _and _Stiles, or did you forget that I saved him too while you were busy with the Argents and hung up on him?" _Betcha didn't think I talked to Stiles, huh? _Scott looked down ashamed while Stiles gave me a look that said I went to far.

Harris's voice broke out, making us look at the container, "Time. If you've catalyzed the reaction correctly, you should now be looking at a crystal." Stiles turned our container which had some nasty goop in in it, "Now for the part of that last experiment I'm sure you'll all enjoy - You can eat it."

We turned to Isaac who held the crystal to Lydia with a pair of tongs. I gripped both of their wrists as we noticed the toxin dripping off of it as she held it in her hand. Scott stood up, the whole class looking to us as he yelled out her name.

She looked over at us, impatient with the candy in her hand. "What?"

Scott sat down unable to think of something to say, "Nothing…"

We all watched as Lydia put the candy in her mouth and bite it…I let out a breath, but looked to Scott and Stiles sorry for whatever I'm going to be a part of. _She failed the test...Lydia's the kanima._

The bell rang and I waited, giving Harris my make-up work, which earned me a slightly amused and impressed glare from him, before being dragged into an empty classroom. I turned to attack whoever grabbed me, but stopped when I saw it was only my 'pack'. I sighed, leaning on a table.

"Is anyone going to tell me what's going on now? Hell, I didn't even know you were in school today, Boyd." I turned to him as he shrugged, not knowing himself. He looked down at his phone, pointing to the door.

"Well, I am, and now, Derek wants me at the Lacrosse Field. Someone fill her in? Derek thought you guys were going to tell her." He left, leaving me to glare at the two remaining teens.

"Oh really?" I crossed my arms at them, "And what is it I was supposed to be helping you two asshats do anyway? I mean since I was 'back-up' and all?"

"Like you were going to help us anyway." Erica snapped, moving in front of me, "I mean after all, did you actually leave to me and Derek, or was it to save Stiles? And if you really want our friendship to ever be mended, than you are going to want to be careful with what you say."

I stood up, getting into her face, not backing down from her stare, "I went for _all_ of you? Is it that hard to believe? And if you really think I'd steep so low as to take Stiles when I _know_ how you feel about him? Then you must mistake me for my sister, which something I never thought I would have to worry about you." I pushed her and went to the door, shaking Isaac's hand off of my arm. "Text me where to be, and I'll be there, but for now? I'm going to the library, Lydia usually goes there for free period, I'll keep on eye on her until whatever plan Derek has needs to be executed."

Of course she wasn't there the one time I would need her to be, so I decided to sit and get my homework done, texting Isaac and Erica to say I couldn't find her. I had done a sweep of the school and still couldn't find her. When the bell rang I stood up to leave, catching sight of something out the window and grunted to myself, my fists clenched just as my pack mates came in. Isaac lifted Matt up by his shirt, his face angry as he looked around.

"Where is she?"

I ran over, putting a hand on Isaac's arm, "Put him down, he doesn't know…" He looked at me to elaborate, "I just saw Stiles drive off with her in the back...along with Allison and Jackson."

He dropped Matt running a hand through his hair as Erica pulled out her phone to text Derek, "Oh, Great…"

"You're telling me…" I muttered, the three of us leaving the school and waiting for instructions from Derek.

* * *

The five of us stood outside of Scott's house, hoping that wrecking Danny's gear would put him on enough of a goose chase for us to get in and get Lydia. Allison and Stiles kept looking out of the window, but other than that, we didn't have any idea what was going on in there. I shifted slightly form foot to to foot, wanting to get this over with before I changed my mind. As if he read my mind, which, hell, he might have, Derek turned to me and Isaac.

"Steph, you and Isaac go through the back and distract Stiles and the hunter while Erica goes through the window. Boyd and I will wait here, and if need be go after you."

I nodded, grabbing Isaac's arm and moving around the house, careful to stay below the windows so that nobody could see us. Before going in, I stopped him, biting my lip. He looked at me curiously.

"Be careful going in okay? I'm sure Allison is going to be armed, and Stiles...well, he shouldn't be a problem, but-" I sighed, letting go of him, "Anyway...let's get this done…"

He chuckled lightly as I swung the door open and made the way through the kitchen, "yea...well don't let your emotions get in the way and have you go easy on them." I rolled my eyes as we went through the hallway, Isaac knocking Allison's bow down and I pushed Stiles into the wall.

He looked up at me hurt, but I didn't care, jumping down and holding his throat as Isaac went after Allison and I heard Erica break in. I lifted him up and pushed him against the wall of the dining room, hoping to be hidden from view. From the noises I heard, it wouldn't be too much of an issue.

"Look, Stiles, I don't want to kill Lydia anymore than you do, but we have no choice! She's killing people!" I said, using my arm to hold him against the wall as he struggled against me.

"There's no way it can be Lydia, Steph! And killing her doesn't make it the right thing to do! We can save her, you just have to give us the chance."

I sighed, shaking my head, "I'm sorry, but I can't…" I pulled back my fist, "And I can't have you trying to stop me either…"

I went to move my fist, but found it being held back, letting go of Stiles I turned to see Scott standing there, with Alison moving a paralyzed Erica next to an unconscious Scott. I growled, my claws out, and my eyes glowing, which made Allison gasp _guess she didn't think I would fight back_. I lunged for Scott, but he dodged me, pushing my into the wall with my own momentum. I fell, looking up at him as he went to hit me, but kicking out his legs, standing and going for Allison, instead, Stiles hit me over the head with a chair, making me fall down, slightly winded. The next things I was seeing was Derek's disappointed frown looking down at me, as I was tossed into the yard. I sat up and stood next to Boyd who looked worriedly at Derek. We followed his gaze to see Scott looking down at us with Stiles and Allison behind him on the porch.

Derek laughed lightly, looking at them amused, "I think I'm finally getting why you keep refusing me, Scott. You're not an omega, you're already an Alpha of your own pack." _A very motley crue of a pack…_ "But you know you can't beat me."

Scott stared him down, "I can hold you off until the cops get here."

We turned, hearing the sirens in the distance. Derek turned to me and Boyd, gesturing to Erica and Isaac. "Get them out of here."

Boyd lifted up Erica as I had Isaac lean on me, moving to the Camaro, but suddenly, Lydia ran out of the house, screaming to no one in particular. "Would someone please tell me what the hell is going on?"

We all looked to her then heard a screech from the roof as the Kanima showed up, Making a screeching noise at us all before jumping of of the roof. Shifting Isaac over to Boyd, I moved next to Derek, trying to figure out what we were to do when I heard Scott mutter to himself, "it's Jackson."

_Well Crap…_

* * *

Boyd got the others back to the substation while Derek and I chased the Kanima down. I was pretty sure the only reason I was allowed to come along was because he knew I would have followed him anyway, but I took it as a small victory anyway. I fell behind Derek's Alpha speed after a little while, but caught up with him as they were in an old arched structure, the Kanima crawling up the wall of it, and cutting a wire. We shielded our eyes as it jumped down, Derek grabbing my arm suddenly pulling me behind one of the pillars.

"What are you-"

He covered my mouth, pointed as one of the Argents gunned the thing down, emptying a clip into its chest. When it went down, he walked past it, looking for us most likely. We watched as it stood up and threw him against the wall about to attack it, but instead going over to Gerard, standing in front of him. They sort of just stared at each other, making me look to Derek in surprise and confusion. He shrugged, not sure what was going on himself. Suddenly Scott showed up, pushing the Kanima away from Gerard before following it. Derek grabbed my arm, pointing where they went.

"See if you can get them to trust you by helping them! Go, I'll be there in a few minutes." I paused, not sure where he was going with this, "I'll explain later, just go!"

I ran from my hiding spot, following Scott as Derek pushed for me to go. I followed him to a corner where I saw Stiles scare Scott as he watched the line into the club. I walked up as Stiles spoke, obvious as ever.

"What? You couldn't catch his scent?"

Scott shook his head, " I don't think he has one."

I walked up making both boys jump, "Yea, I don't get one either."

Stiles looked at me for a second, but just shook it off, looking to Scott, "All right, any clue where he's going?"

Scott turned back to the entrance, watching people, "To kill someone."

I scoffed, "Well no shit."

Stiles nodded my way, his sarcasm striking again, "Ah. That explains the claws, and the fangs, and all that. Good. Makes perfect sense now." Scott looked at him with a withering expression and I laughed slightly, "What? Scott, come on. I'm 147 pounds of pale skin and fragile bone, okay? Sarcasm is my only defense."

"Which you uses whenever given the opportunity," I smirked, surveying the side of the building to see if there was any sign of it.

Scott groaned, "Just help me find it."

"Not "it." Jackson." Stiles corrected, making Scott sigh.

"Yeah, I know. I - I know." turned to me, "And what are you doing here?"

"I want to help? Besides, what if it's a duel identity thing? You now Jackson vs. the Kanima?"

Stiles nodded slightly, "All right, so you're saying? What that he might now what he is? Did anybody else see him back at your house?" he looked to Scott.

"I mean, I don't think so, but he already passed Derek's test anyway." I bit my lip nodding, since it added to my theory.

Stiles motioned with his hands, "Yeah, but that's just the thing. How did he pass the test?"

Scott shook his head, "I don't know."

Stiles looked at me then at Scott again, "Maybe it's like Steph is saying and it's an either - or thing. I mean, Derek said that a snake can't be poisoned by its own venom, right? When's the kanima not the kanima?"

Scott and I looked at each other, "When it's Jackson." We said.

Stiles backed up, looking at the roof, "Uh - guys. See that?" Stiles pointed,

Scott and I looked up to see Jackson's... tail disappear into the building, "He's inside."

"You two should really be detectives, what with your powers of observation and all," I ran a hand through my hair, trying to see if I would figure out why Jackson would be going into this club, that I doubt the guys even knew as a gay bar.

Stiles spoke up, ignoring my comment, "What's he gonna do in there?"

Scott sniffed something, turning to the line as a familar scent filled my nose, "I know who he's after."

I moved to the corner, looking for the person worriedly, "I got it too."

Stiles looked at us in wonder, " What, how? How? Did you smell something?"

Scott motioned his head to where we were looking "Armani."

We all stood in shock as we watched Danny pay to go into the club where his best friend was waiting to kill him.

* * *

_That's it for now folks! I hope you liked it! You know the drill, review, fave or follow so I know how I'm doing! _

_~Gwen_


	10. Advantages in Amicability

16

_Okay my lovelies! Time for the next chapter! Just to let everyone know, I fixed all the time breaks and put in actual horizontal lines! It might help it make more sense now. Sorry for that, I didn't even realize that the symbols set I was using didn't even show up. So yeah….anyways….Thanks so much to everyone who has been faving and following this story it means the world to me! :)_

_**Disclaimer I don't own Teen Wolf, if I did Daniel Sharman wouldn't be allowed to leave so that I could see Isaac forever and always. **_

Chapter 10: Advantages of Amicability

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We made our way around the building, trying to find a way to sneak into the building and save Danny without alerting Jackson to our presence. Stiles got to the back door before me and Scott only to find it locked. He started to give out an annoyed huff and pass in front of us, making Scott and I smile at each other in spite of ourselves. He went to leave, but I had to put my arm out so he didn't go too far. He looked around above us instead, saying,

"Aw, man, come on! All right, maybe there's like a...ugh...like a window we could go through or some kind of-"

"Uh, Stiles?" He looked at me, no longer pacing.

"Yeah?" I pointed to Scott who smiled and tossed the handle to him, going into the building ahead of us. "or some kind of handle that we could rip off with supernatural strength…" He sighed, tossing the handle and going in with me behind him. "How'd I not think of that one?"

"Well….you _are_ only human." I smirked, unable to resist the quip.

"Ha-ha! Very fu-what the hell are you doing?" He lost his comeback as I took off my dirt and grass stained henley and wrapped in around my waist.

"Oh, this?" I gestured to my torso which was now only dressed in a lacy purple bralette that fell about an inch or two above the curve of my waist, shaking my hair into a messy ponytail. "It's a _club_ Stiles. If my extra 'x' chromosome wasn't already too much of a monicar, I think if I looked like I just had wrestling match with a lawnmower I would stick out a little _too much."_

"What are you talking about extra-oh!" He was grabbed suddenly as the club opened up in front of us, men everywhere in different states of dress. I giggled to myself as he and Scott looked around in surprise.

"Dude, everyone here's a dude aside from Stephanie." He looked at me and I nodded for him to continue, "I think we're in a gay club."

We turned to see Stiles glaring at us as a group of drag queens fawned over him. There was one with a kinky blonde wig-or maybe it was real, I couldn't really tell-that was eyeing him very admiringly and petting his buzz-cut. "Man, _nothing_ gets past those keen werewolf senses, huh, Scott?" He pulls away, straightening his hoodie, "And you!" He pointed to me, "You knew! Thanks _so _much for the warning there, _great_ friendship quality."

"See you had to go and make that comment," I shrugged, nonchalantly, moving to the bar that overlooked the dance floor, the boys following suit, "I was going to save you from any and all future flirtations tonight, but now you've snarked your way out of it."

"Oh, really? And what would you have done," I smirked and whispered something in his ear, "Huh. And here I thought I wasn't your type."

"My what now?" I quirked an eyebrow at him while Scott gave him a warning look that he promptly ignored, a smirk on his face.

"Oh, you know, about 6'1" with blue eyes, and curly hair? Just tonight got his ass kicked for trying to kill the girl I've loved since the third grade?"

I flushed slightly, thinking of Isaac and hoping he was okay. I glared at Stiles with a half-hearted growl, "Don't make me go back over there and feed you to the drag queens."

"Careful there, Steph, I didn't hear you denying anything with that threat." Stiles turned to the bar, as I looked at Scott with a silent plea to kill his best friend, "Three beers." I smacked his arm, "Ow! Okay fine, make that two."

The bartender looked at me, then the boys, "IDs?" They handed him their driver's license while I indicated I wasn't drinking. He laughed handing them back, "How about three cokes?"

They pocketed their licenses and Stiles spoke up, moving with the music, "Rum and Coke? Sure." All three of us gave him a look." Coke's fine Actually. I'm driving anyway." He moved with the music making me feel bad for anyone watching.

As soon as the one bartender left, another guy showed up with two drinks for Scott and Stiles that were _not _our cokes in any respect. He leaned forward, allowing me to admire his very shirtless and very defined chest. "This one's paid for." He said, pointing to a cutie with a striped muscle shirt giving Stiles sex eyes. Scott just gave him a look as they took the drinks, but I flat out saying it, taking payback for his comment about Isaac.

"Well, Stilinski, you may not be _my_ type, but you are _definitely _his." I smirked while stealing a sip of his drink.

"Oh, shut up, both of you!" He turned around, snatching his drink back from me with a scowl. _Thank god it was _way_ too fruity for me, which of course I mean in terms of flavor only. _Scott laughed, shaking his head as we all turned to lean against the bar.

"I didn't say anything, Steph did."

"Yea well your face did. Though I'm still kind of confused as to why you are here." Stiles said while he half-glared at me.

I sighed, "Jackson may be an ass, but he's still a..mostly innocent person. I can't stand by and watch Derek kill him." I said, speaking my thoughts from when we tested him the night before, "And I mean, it's not like I'm a good little beta anyway...I kinda do my own thing, and just sleep in the same building."

Stiles nodded slowly, but then froze when he looked into the crowd, Scott doing the same while Stiles spoke, "Hey."

I turned to both of them, "Uh...what is it guys?"

Stiles pointed, "I found Danny."

Scott just kept his gaze upward as I looked to see Danny dancing with yet another attractive and shirtless guy, making me realize I needed to come to gay clubs more often. "I found Jackson."

All three of us looked up to see Jackson near the fog machine and looking down at Danny, his slitted eyes intent on his target. "Get to Danny."

Stiles turned to us. "What are you going to do?" We each extracted our claws, making him head look over at the dance floor with a slight head tilt, "Works for me."

As he left, Scott and I moved in from different spots in the crowd, but I bumped into Derek, looking to see if Scott noticed us. I went to say something, but he shook his head and pointed for me to find my way to Stiles, who was having a very difficult time getting through the crowd. Nodding, I moved through the crowd with ease, dancing my way between bodies or flashing my eyes at people so that they would jump back in surprise. I smirked, knowing that they probably thought it was whatever drugs they were taken or were too drunk to remember what they saw. Somehow, I made it to Stiles within seconds as he got stuck and called out for Danny.

"I take it you've never been to a proper club before." I said, pulling him out of the bind he was in.

"Oh, and you have?"

"Please." I rolled my eyes, "You forget who my sister is. And I remember one thing she said about clubs it was that you have to dance your way to where you want to go." The fog machine went off and I looked through the crowd with my wolf eyes. "And we need to get to Danny now!" I grabbed his hand, as the crowd started to run away and we didn't need to dance anymore. We pushed our way over to see six people down, a few of them with boyfriend's looming over them worriedly. I kneeled down to Danny, who was closest to us.

"Danny!" I grabbed his head, feeling his neck and sighing when I realized he was only paralyzed.

"McGrath?" I nodded, "What are you _doing_ here? This isn't exactly your scene."

"Well, when you told me about you and Bobby today I figured you'd be here and I wanted to make sure you were okay." I said, not exactly lying, when we were in the library earlier today and Matt was off somewhere we had talked about it.

He laughed lightly, trying to move, and not able to, "Well I was...but now I can't move...I didn't take anything, so…"

I looked up at Stiles who held up his phone, mouthing _S__cott needs us _"Well, don't worry, I'm sure someone called 911 and an ambulance will be here to help you soon. I have to go found McCall because I dragged him and Stilinski with me."

"Okay...be careful, Steph." I nodded that I would and walked with Stiles to the parking garage.

We found Scott standing next to a car, looking down at a very bloody and _very _naked Jackson. I averted my eyes, and looked to Scott.

"What happened?!"

"Derek happened!" He said, looking to Stiles, "What do we do with him now?"

Stiles rubbed the back of his head, looking around, "Uh...come on, my jeep is parked over here…"

We threw him in the back of the jeep and covered him with a blanket as Scott tried to see is Danny knew why Jackson would want to kill him. I unfortunately had to sit in the back with Jackson's head in my lap, so I wiped his face and neck off, glaring at Stiles in the rearview mirror. Scott came in, and we turned to him, expectantly.

"Couldn't get anything out of Danny." He looked at me as if to see if I was still there. I waved as Stiles looked over at the crime scene worriedly.

"Okay, can we just get the hell outta here now, before one of my dad's deputies sees me?"

"You spoke too late, Dude…" I said.

"What?" I pointed to his dad's car pulling up, "Oh, my God. Oh, my God! Could this get any worse?" Jackson shifted in my lap making me jump out of the car and drop him with a groan, "That was rhetorical."

"Sorry…" I mumbled, closing the door quietly.

Scott looked at Stiles, while I stood at the window, "Get rid of him."

Stiles looked at him like he was crazy, "Get rid of him? We're at a crime scene, and he's the sheriff."

Scott shook his head, looking at both of us, "Do something! Take Steph with you."

"What!?" I looked at them confused as Stiles grabbed my arm and dragged me with him, "You do remember that I only this morning lost my fugitive status, right?"

Stiles ignored me, and we stopped in front of his dad, "Hey."

"Good evening, Sheriff Stilinski," I smiled, gripping Stiles' arm so that he winced with pain.

The sheriff looked at us a suspicious look in his eyes, "What're you guys doing here?"

Stiles scoffed, "What do you mean what are we doing here?" I gave him a warning look, "What? It's a club. It's a club, we were clubbing, you know? At the club." He waved his arms around, gesturing to the club.

"That's right sir, Danny told us about it."

Stilinski looked at the club then us, and I was suddenly very aware that I hadn't put my shirt back on. "Not exactly your type of club, guys."

Stiles, dropped his act, suddenly 'acting' nervous, "Uh - well, dad - There's a conversation that we -"

His dad cut him off along with me, "You're not gay."

"Wha-" He glared at me pointedly, "I _could_ be."

"Not dressed like that." I pointed to his dad with a smirk, knowing he was right.

"Well, what's - uh - Steph was…"

"This is the second crime scene that you just happened to have shown up on, and same for your friend Stephanie, one of which had her and Isaac Lahey's cells empty and a deputy with an arrow in his leg." I shrunk away from his gaze, "At this point, I've been fed so many lies, I'm not sure I know the kid standing in front of me. Now, what the hell is going on?"

Stiles lost whatever he was going to say, "Dad, I - I -"

"The truth, Stiles."

"The truth…" I bit my lip, feeling guilty as I know that Stiles had lie to save my ass before.

I rested my hand Stiles' arm, saving him, "Come on, he won't be made if we tell him why we came…"

Stiles sighed, "all right. Well, the truth is that we were here with Danny. Yeah, 'cause he just broke up with his boyfriend, so, you know, we were just trying to take him out and get his mind off things. That's - that's it." He looked at his dad, who looked at us for a second and sighed.

"Well, that's really good of you guys. You're good friends."

I smiled, turning to him, "We only do what Danny would do for us, Sir. He's a good friend and we just hope he'll be okay."

He nodded, "I'm sure he'll be fine...you guys go home, You can visit him at the hospital tomorrow."

We nodded, and went to the jeep, not saying anything until we started to drive.

"Do I really have to keep him in my lap, guys?! Can't we put him in a sitting position?" I whined, grimacing down at the creep that has tried to kill me twice already.

"Not really a priority, Steph!" Stiles growled, looking to Scott, "Uh, what about your house?"

"Not with my mom there!"

"Well we can't bring him back to the substation or Stiles' place!" I said, between the, "My pack will kill him, and who knows that would happen if Stiles' dad saw him."

Scott looked out the window then back at us, "We need to take him somewhere where we can hold him long enough to figure out what to do with him. Or long enough to convince him he's dangerous."

Stiles, lifted hands from the steering wheel for a second, "I still say we just kill him, but if we drop him off with Stephanie, Derek could do it for us."

Scott and I yelled at him, me covering Jackson's ears, "We're not killing him!"

Stiles jumped away from our voices, "God, f - Okay, okay. I got an idea."

"Does it involve breaking the law?" Scott said.

"Does it involve stealing from your Dad?" I quirked up.

Stiles looked at us, "By now, don't you think that's a given?"

Scott sighed,"I was just trying to be optimistic."

I shrugged, "I was hoping you would think I was kidding…"

Stiles sighed, looking at the road, "Don't bother."

A few hours later we were in the preserve with a transport vehicle. I crossed my arms looking at the guys. We had stayed up the rest of the morning in case he had woken up and escaped. luckily that didn't happen so we think he had fallen asleep into Scott knocking him out...which sounds a lot better in my head.

"Don't you think he's going to be pissed when he wakes up?" I said, looking at them worriedly, "I mean he's tried to kill me twice before this...and I don't think he'll fail the third if he sees me involved in this."

Stiles went to say something when Jackson's voice broke through the vehicle, his voice, livid, "Stiles! McCall! I'm gonna _Kill _you!"

Stiles looked at us, "Well...he didn't say _your_ name?"

I groaned while Scott gave him a look that told him what I yelled, "Shut _up_ Stiles!"

* * *

I woke up curled in the front cab of the transport vehicle to my cell ringing.

"mmmhmm" I picked it up to answer it, "Hello?"

"Steph? Where are you?!" I jumped at Derek's voice, "I had to tell everyone that you were just out late, but Isaac won't leave me alone now that you're still not here."

"Oh, um, You know. I uh, stayed with Stiles and Scott...we have the Kanima trapped in a transport vehicle until we can figure out what to do with hi-it." I faltered, not really sure what I was supposed to be reporting back to him. "Besides, when I tried to follow what you were doing you had me work with them. Twice. Can you explain that to me?"

Derek sighed slightly, "I thought it was obvious. I want you to spy on them by acting like you aren't following my orders."

"You mean act like myself?" I said, looking around to make sure no one was listening to our conversation. "I mean, it's not like I've been the perfect pack member you want me to be."

"Yea well right now, you're the best shot I have. Erica and Isaac aren't exactly winning any prizes with them and you seem about as close to Stiles as anyone outside of Scott can bet"

"Don't let Erica hear you say that. She'll tan my hide." I muttered.

"So, do you know who it is?" I bit my lip, not sure if I should tell him. "Steph? Do you know who the Kanima is?"

"uh...I…"

"It's Jackson. Isn't it?"

I sighed, "Yeah...but you're going to have to act like you don't know so that they still trust me! If you guys come after him right after this, they'll know I told you and then you'll lose your spy within."

Derek stayed quiet for a second then sighed, "Fine. But give me something to get Isaac off of my back."

I laughed slightly, "I don't know, make something up." I saw Stiles get out of the back through the side mirror, "Look I gotta go, Stiles is coming back." I hung up and walked out.

"Morning sleepy head." Stiles smirked as I stretched my back out, shivering slightly. I had put my henley back on, but it was still kind of cold. "Oh..here, take one of my hoodies, I've got two." He shrugged one off and it to me.

I grabbed it, slipping it on with a small smile, "Thanks."

"No problem." He put his hands in the pockets of the other hoodie. "Are you going to get in trouble with Derek for this?"

I hugged my chest, shrugging, "No more than I've usually been getting myself in. I mean like I said at the club, Derek and I don't really see eye to eye. And I'm not going to let him kill Jackson if there's a chance that he doesn't know what he is doing."

Stiles nodded and we leaned against the van. He started texting something when Allison came up next to him, looking at me strangely. She didn't say anything, Stiles turning and jumping into me when he saw her.

"Oh, my God." He said, looking like he just had a heart attack.

Allison ignored it, an urgency in her voice "They know." She said.

Stiles and I looked at her, "What?"

Allison held her arms out in emphasis, "They know Jackson's missing!"

Stiles looked down at the phone, "No, they can't. I've been texting his parents since last night. They don't have a clue." He held it up for us to see.

Allison shook her head, "My grandfather told me his parents went to the police. They know."

Stiles looked at the phone scared, gasping. He held it up between his thumb and his forefinger, waving the other hand up and down, "Oh-!" He tossed the phone to Allison, and scrambled into the cab, tuning into the dispatch. We followed behind him listening.

_All available units proceed to Beacon Hills Preserve as instructed. Proceed with caution until Sheriff Stilinski arrival. Proceed with caution._

The three of us looked at each other.

"What now?" I said, panicking slightly, "I don't know about you two, but I _really_ don't want to go back to being a fugitive…"

Stiles turned to us, "Get in." The three of us got in, Stiles and Allison in the seats and myself in the middle, the dispatch radio in my lap.

Allison turned to us, "Where are we going? And what is _she _doing here after she tried to help Derek kill Lydia?"

Stiles dialed a number, throwing Jackson's phone out the window and driving off, "Somewhere very far from this."

"And _she_ is here because _she _didn't agree with killing Lydia but had to follow orders." I said, not happy that she had tried to talk about me like I wasn't here. "Believe it or not, I'm on your side, Huntress."

We sat in silence, Allison clearly not happy with the idea, not that I cared, but that just meant it was going to be a _long_ night. We met Scott at this slight hill that sloped just before a cliff looking over the town. He had been texting Allison and telling her about his visit with Danny and how he found out somebody had edited the video that Jackson had told Derek about the night we tested him. Danny was recovering it for him and had it on a tablet that he had in is car, but when Scott went to get it, it was missing. After the car was parked, we got out and walked down the hill with Scott who was scratching his head at a loss.

"If Jackson doesn't remember being the kanima, he's definitely not going to remember taking Danny's tablet."

Stiles spread his arms out, and dropped them, "Why would he steal the thing if he doesn't even know what's on it?"

"Oh how?" I rubbed the back of my neck nervously, "I mean what if he didn't? We've had him locked up all day."

Allison nodded, "Steph's right, what if someone else took it?"

"Then somebody else knows what he is." Stiles said, looking at us all pointedly.

Scott sighed, "Uh...it could mean someone's protecting him."

Are we even sure if that's a good thing?" I lifted my hand of of my neck and gestured outward with it.

Allison looked at us, "Well it's like the bestiary says, "Kanima Seeks a Friend", Right?"

Stiles shook his head, "Okay hold on. So, somebody watches Jackson make a video of himself turning into the Kanima and then just erases part of it so he wouldn't know? Who would do that?"

"Somebody who wanted to protect him?" I looked to Allison.

"Are we so sure that their protecting him? I mean, he doesn't even know what's going on or these murders that are going on are being committed by him."

Scott looked to Stiles, "There's something else. You said that the only thing you could find online about the Kanima is that it goes after murders. What if that's true."

I grunted, "Well that would make a hell of a lot of sense." They all looked at me, and I shook my head, "Just that before the pool, it had attacked me before, I just didn't connect it until now…"

Stiles stood shocked, backing away from me slightly, "You _killed _Someone?"

I nodded, looking down, "It was that homeless man in the preserve? I...I had a uh, a blackout the night I was Bitten. It was the full moon, so I shifted for the first time and was well...you know…." I sighed, looking up, "I don't even remember it happening, just waking up covered in blood and miles away from where the body was. I didn't mean to hurt anyone…"

Stiles shook his head, looking away from me and then to the other two, "Still...even if we include what we just learned about Stephanie," I flinched when he used my full name, saddened that he lost any familiarity with me. "It can't be, it's tried to kill _all_ of us, remember? I don't know about you two, but I haven't killed anyone lately."

Scott looked to Allison, freeing me from his look of pity and understanding."I don't think it was actually trying to kill us. Remember when we went to Isaac's that first time?" I tried to get Stiles to look at me so he could explain the context, but he was avoiding my gaze, "It just went right by us, right?"

Allison nodded in agreement, then shook her head, "You're right, it just ran off."

He turned to Stiles, "And it didn't kill you at the mechanic's garage."

"Well, Yeah. But then it tried to kill me and Derek in the pool?"

"Did it?"

"Well it would've. It was waiting for us to come out." He looked at Scott questioningly.

I held my hand up, crossing my other arm under it, "Or maybe it was waiting for you to drop Derek? Maybe he was the murderer it was after and it would have let you go?"

Scott shook his head, "Or that it was just trying to keep you in?"

Stiles looked between us, his mouth open in shock, "Why do I feel violated all of a sudden?"

Scott sighed, "Because there's something else going on and we don't know what it is. We don't know anything about what's going on with Jackson or who is protecting him."

"Know thy enemy." We all looked to Allison and she shook her head, "Just something my grandfather said."

"As if your Grandfather wasn't scary enough on his own, he walks around quoting _The Art of War._" I mumbled, making Allison give me a look.

Stiles shrugged, "Got it. Kill Jackson: Problem solved."

"He risked his life for us." Scott said, looking at his best friend, "Against Peter, remember?!"

I pointed towards Scott, "uh, Yeah...I don't know about that, but I do know that Jackson doesn't deserve to die. I mean yes, he isn't exactly the most compassionate human being, but if we haven't killed Coach for that, then I don't see why we should kill Jackson for it. Especially if he is clueless about this."

"Yes, but what did we just find out? He got the Bite from Derek-Your Alpha helped him on the path to becoming a werewolf." Stiles pointed to me then opened his arms wide, "Funny how he got exactly what he wanted by supposedly risking his life for us. It's _funny_."

Scott looked unsure, "Yea, but like Steph said, it doesn't mean he's not worth saving."

Stiles groaned, "It's always something with him though."

"He doesn't know what he's doing."

"Yes I heard you and Steph the last ten times, _so what_?"

"We didn't _either_!" Scott yelled, making Allison and Stiles jump slightly, and I even felt slightly compelled to submit to him. "Are you saying we should kill Steph? I mean by your logic, she killed someone, so might as well, right?"

Stiles looked at me, and for a second I was scared he would say the should. He sighed, shaking his head, "No…"

Scott turned to Allison, "And you remember when I almost killed you and Jackson?" She nodded, looking down, "I had someone to stop me."

"Hell, I had Isaac to stop me from _consciously_ killing my sister." I offered, Scott giving me a nod of thanks.

"He has _no one._"

Stiles sighed, looking at the van, "Well that's his own fault."

"It doesn't matter. If we can save him, we should try."

Stiles looked at us before shaking his head, "Fine. But if he kills anybody else? Then it falls on you two. I hope you're prepared for that."

I looked at Scott, hoping that he was as certain as he sounded, "I won't have to be."

* * *

I sighed looking down at the stream, glad to be away from the van after being in it all day. And to be away from Scott and Allison. They reeked of sexual tension and I just had to get away from it.I looked up at the stars, walking along one of the preserve's smaller streams. Stiles had left after a few hours of profoundly awkward silence and unsure stares, claiming he was going to check on Lydia. I knew it was also to get away from me since he hadn't said anything to me since I dropped the bomb about me being a murderer. The word left a metallic taste in my mouth and a twisted feeling in my gut. I know it was only a matter of time before they found out, but I still couldn't help but feel like there could have been a better moment to tell them. I don't know how, but I ended up in the very clearing that I had woken up in, but didn't really mind it so much. I knew it was a part of my past I couldn't change, and that if I thought about it too much it would consume me. My phone buzzed and I pulled my phone out from Stiles' hoodie, surprised it wasn't dead yet and that anyone would be texting me.

**From Lahey, Isaac: **

** Where the HELL are you?! Nobody has seen you since Scott's house last night and Derek won't tell me anything. **

I rolled my eyes at the angry emoji he used, surprised that he even used one if he was all that mad to begin with. I ran a hand through my hair, trying to judge if I was far enough away for me to see him. He clearly wasn't going to leave anyone alone otherwise. I sighed and decided to just bite the bullet.

**From Steph:**

** I'm at the preserve where you found me. If it's driving you that crazy just come here.**

I had barely sent it five minutes ago when I felt him behind me, a strange anger radiating from him. When I turned to look at him, I was taken back by the sight of him. He didn't have his Jacket on, just a dark blue crew neck sweater over jeans with his boots. His hair had been cut and he looked a lot cleaner just more _Isaac_. I smiled, trying to defuse the tension his stare was causing.

"You look good, Lahey." He just glared, "Okay no small talk…"

"Where. Were you?" He took a step towards me, the 6 inches he had on me very intimidating suddenly.

"Wow." I gasped, "Somebody was worried…And here I thought you didn't like my snarky bravado." I close my eyes, inwardly chastising my newfound boldness. "Kidding of course… I just needed a day to adjust to things is all. I'm not really used to trying to kill my friends or classmates, so I talked to Derek and he said it was okay."

Isaac growled, walking forward until I was forced against a tree, his arms blocking me to stand in front of him, "Don't lie to me, Steph."

"What are you-?" My eyes widened, starting to be a little scared of what he was going to do, "I'm not ly-"

"Save it!" He snarled, glaring at 'my' hoodie in contempt. "I can smell them on you. McCall. _Jackson_." He leaned close to me, his face dangerously close to me, "You _Reek_ of Stilinski."

His eyes started to change, a feral look them. I pushed him away, sliding slightly against the tree. "What the _hell_ has gotten _into_ you?!" He didn't respond, just looked at me from where he was, "Isaac...you're scaring me."

"And you're _disgusting_ me, Stephanie!" I winced as he loomed over me, his face in mine, "You talk a big game about now ending up like your sister or Erica, but in reality you are just like them."

I felt my eyes flash, clenching my hands into fists to calm myself down from the churning anger and hurt that his words caused, "You think I'm _slutting_ myself around to the like of _Scott and Stiles?_ That I'm even doing that at _all_? Where do you get off saying that?! Yes I smell like them, yes I've been with them. _Under orders_. From _Derek_. I was to spy on them and act like the rebellious little wolf I am and then when I was _legitimately_ cold, Stiles offered me his sweatshirt." I held my fists next to my head before pushing at him, not really doing anything. "God what is _Wrong_ with you?!"

He looked at me with a frustration I have never seen before, he leaned down, putting his hands on other side of the tree as I shrank into it again, "_Maybe_ I don't like catching a scent that isn't mine or any of the pack's on you." He growled, "Especially the _male _scents I'm smelling now."

I shook my head, my eyes skyward before meeting his with an angry bark of laughter, "Oh, well have I got news for you, buddy! _Get over it!_ Because last time I checked you are _not_ my boyfriend and therefore have _no say_ in who I hang out with, boy, girl, or otherwise! So why don't you back off and-"

My eyes widened as I was cut off by the sensation of Isaac's lips crashing over my own. His hands lightly pulling my face closer to his, the kiss filled win an urgency I had never felt from anyone before. I didn't even get a chance to react before he pulled away, taking a step back and taking a few short deep breaths. I held onto the tree for support before I heard a sound coming from the cliff that we had the van at. I looked to him for a second, sighing as the sound got worse, like something was breaking through chains and metal.

"I uh...I know this is awful timing…." I said, my cheeks burning with a _very_ delayed blush, "But I- I gotta go…" I moved to leave, but tripped on the roots of the tree stumbling for a few steps. I regained my balance and turned slightly, "We'll….We'll talk later okay?"

He nodded slightly and I ran off, not sure how I was going to deal with that or what I saw when I reached the trio standing at the van. The chains were broken and the van doors were busted open with no sign of Jackson anywhere. They hadn't noticed my presence yet, but Scott looked in the car with the same guilt coming off of him that I felt after what Stiles said earlier. Allison spoke up first.

"I have to tell my father," She looked to Scott, but he kept his back to us, "Scott. He's going to kill someone."

Scott sighed, turning to us, "Okay...tell him. Tell him _everything." _

"I uh….._everything_ everything?" The other two turned to me, as Scott nodded.

Stiles sighed, looking at everyone, "Scott, I gotta tell mine, too."

SCott and I shared a look, "This is all my fault."

I put my hand on his arm, "Hey, it's as much yours as it is mine. I should've kept an extra watch and not walked off."

Allison took my place Scotts side while I shrugged off Stiles' hoodie and placed it in the car for him to grab, "It's not either of your faults! But we do have to tell them. I mean, we're just a bunch of teenagers. We can't handle this."

Stiles turned to me, "Steph...uh, is we're telling them _everything_ you're going to want to leave...When the Argents hear about what you did…" He sighed, looking at me a cautious look in his eyes, "They'll kill you…."

I nodded, "Right...Uhm...keep me updated, okay? I'll see if I can help.." They nodded ushering me to go.

I ran back to the substation craving only three things.

A shower,My bed,

and to Avoid everyone until I figured out what the hell was going on with me and Isaac.

* * *

_Bada-bing bada boom-boom-boom! There it is! Hope you guys enjoyed the longer chapter. I have been posting a couple of shorter ones, so I wanted to make up for it. Let me know what you think of jealous!Isaac and if that seems like something that would happen! Reviews and any feedback are candy to me! _

_Hugs to all, _

_~Gwen_


	11. Restraint or Evasion?

9

_Hey guys! I hope that you are still enjoying the story! I am really happy with the response it has been getting! It is so heartwarming and encouraging you you guys have no idea! Also, I'm going to start doing a new thing with Reviews where I'll answer them on here in the my A/N! So, yea! You'll get a shout out, and I'll get to see what your thoughts are! _

**Starting with BlazingXDarkness! Thanks so much! I'm glad you like it! I mean, I definitely have plans on the two of them being more Wolfy, so I'm glad you noticed and liked it! :)**

**And ****RockaRosalie****: Thanks, I'm glad that I you enjoy this story! I have recently reread this and realized I made a lot of spelling and grammar mistakes, so I'm thinking about going through it soon for adjustments. Thanks for reviewing! **

_**As for the Disclaimer: I don't actually own Teen Wolf or Isaac's Jealous and territorial self, but If I did, he would not suffer abuses to the extent that he does.**_

* * *

Chapter 11: Restraint or Evasion?

I slumped onto my bed after another long day of grueling training set against several days of stressors. I had just gotten out of the shower from a third consecutive day of sparring Erica as a way of avoiding Isaac. A couple days ago Derek was draining Kanima venom from Erica in which Scott became a part of the pack, but only on the terms that we went after the Kanima his way. And the night before that it was Allison texting me that it was a master the Kanima seeks instead of a friend which lead to a trail of clues leading nowhere. Apparently while I was chasing a lead on this whole master of the Kanima thing, Jackson went ballistic in the library, attacking Scott, Allison, Stiles and Erica who were all in detention with Matt hitting him in the head which kills my suspicions. And now today we found out from my spying that Jackson is going to this Rave thing on Friday since Scott saw him at the ticket line last night. I vaguely remember Matt mentioning something about it in one of my classes, which only served to remind me of a phone call I had with Stiles either yesterday or the day before, I can't even keep track of the days anymore.

_My phone had started to incessantly buzz next to me, making me groan as I pulled it up to my ear. _

"_Go for Steph," I mumbled, rubbing my temples from the past few days. _

"_Hey, is this a bad time?" I smiled to myself as I recognized the voice. _

"_It's fine, Stiles, I'm just drained from the last few days. Whats up?" I stood up, pulling my still damp hair from it's towel, knowing that I couldn't sleep with wrapped around my head. _

"_Nothing, um, just what with what happened with Erica yesterday I wanted to see how you were doing. Especially since you weren't in school today." _

"_I was following a hunch on the Kanima's master, but found out that apparently my family skipped town. It was great to see that they had left the house with my stuff in it, and saying that it could be burned while everything else could be donated." I rolled my eyes, knowing they most likely moved in next to the country club and my sister could be transferring to the private school she's been begging to go to since the third grade. _

"_You think that your family did this?" He was skeptical since he only heard the beginning of my theory._

_I sighed, trying to figure out how to explain it to him, "Actually, no...remember how you said that Isaac had an older brother Camden? I thought the name sounded familiar, so I looked into my sisters old blog entries. She'd mentioned him from when she was friends with Matt. Whenever Matt and Isaac would hang out, she would spend time with Camden since she had this hero worship thing going on." _

"_Okay, still not sure who you think is controlling the Kanima…" _

"_Right, well all the people that have died were friends of Camden...they were all on the swim team that his dad coached." I sighed, running a brush through my hair, "I think it's Matt." _

"_Wait you do too?" _

"_Yeah…I mean, Matt and my sister used to be inseparable, then suddenly she started to act like she was one of the big kids. She was always hanging around Camden and the swim team and Matt... he used to hate that. I remember the looks he would give me or her, back when we looked exactly alike. As if she'd betrayed him. Then they both stopped hanging out with Isaac and I didn't even see him again until freshman year. Hell I had forgotten all about the two of them for a while." _

"_So you think he's killing off the swim team because he was jealous of them having Melanie McGrath's full attention?" Stiles laughed a little, " I mean I think it's Matt two, but not for the same reasons." _

"_No, it's more than that...I just don't know...I feel like I know what happened, but I just can't remember…" I heard Derek calling for me, so I tilted my head to my phone, "Listen, I gotta go, Derek's calling for us." _

"_Okay, see you in school tomorrow?"_

"_Sounds good, Stilinski."_

"_See ya, McGrath." _

I was shocked from the memory by Derek actually calling for me to join them, which made me chuckle. I got up, tossing my hair into a ponytail as I came across the pack circled around the trunk of chains Derek had showed us yesterday morning. Erica and Boyd were paired off, leaning against the same pillar with their arms just barely, but still noticeably, touching. I smiled at them, hoping that maybe his quiet intensity would calm her outward vibrance enough to make her tolerable. Isaac was looking at me, a sort of angry and defeated look on his face. Any sign of what had happened to him the other night was gone, but I could still feel that searing urgency and desire radiating from him. It was thrilling and terrifying all at once, I just didn't know what to do about it. All I know is that ever since, I've had to force myself to ignore the ever growing strength of the pull I feel towards him. I stood opposite him, looking to Derek who stood at roughly the midpoint between us. Two tickets rested in his hand as he looked at us with a solemn expression.

"Who's in town that's gotten you so excited and who are you taking with?" I asked, trying to lighten the severely tense mood of the room.

"These aren't for me. They're for Erica and Isaac." He looked at the other three as they looked surprised at this given some obvious changes since the last time they had paired off. "We're going to the Rave Friday night, since Steph told us about Scott seeing Jackson getting a ticket. And that means that whoever's controlling him wants him there and might even will be there,"

"Which means that Allison would have told Gerard..." I said, "Which is why Boyd and I aren't going to the Rave, isn't it? We're to detain them."

Derek nodded, "We're going to be going after it, but we need to make sure they don't beat us to it." He looked to me and Boyd, "You guys don't really have to worry about much, I'm going to make sure that you are safe. Steph, stay close because I want you to come with me and Isaac to see Scott at the animal clinic: They trust you and it will come in handy. Be ready to leave in an hour. I need to talk to Erica and Isaac first."

"I'll be in my car then…" I sighed, looking to Boyd, "You want to come with? I'm just going to be cleaning, but I figured it beats being alone..." He nodded and we went to my car. "Sorry about the mess, like I said, I'm cleaning it now…" I flushed at the state of my room. My clothes were everywhere the bed was in disarray and school papers were strewn all over the place along with my different theories and papers on everything that's going on. And there was the fact that it is an old dilapidated train car, so it wasn't a pretty sight.

Boyd just shrugged, pulling at the blankets, "Don't worry about it, I'll help." He smiled slightly.

"Thanks…" I said, going to the other side of the bed.

We started with the bed so that I could make a pile of my clothing that was clean to fold it while Boyd made me a makeshift desk out of one of the benches to put my laptop and other devices on. After that, we worked on getting rid of the debris that was on the floor and everywhere, all of my stuff thrown on the two side benches and bed. I rolled out a carpet I had found along the floor and opened up a couple of the moon chairs I'd found back at my abandoned house. Then came the separation of my homework from my supernatural information papers, which we had surprisingly got to within half an hour. Luckily, I am a generally organized person, so I had folders and binders color coded for each class.

"Okay, so how do we do this?" Boyd asked, after we'd finished laughing at a few jokes we'd made about how it looked like we just finished an extreme makeover train edition project.

"It's easy: Blue is for English, green is for Chem, purple for algebra, red for history, black is for health and family science, and the grey is for my Supernatural things. Though the folder is for the Kanima and the binder is tabbed for everything else." I pointed to each accordingly, "That's why it's the only binder here and the others are at school."

He nodded, and we started to pile and adjust things accordingly. We had just about finished and were shifting through the supernatural pile to put in the tabs when I spoke up, looking to him cautiously.

"So um...thanks for all your help. I can't believe we got all of this done so fast." I laughed, looking around at my new and improved room.

"Yea, well, our speed and strength made the debris removal a lot easier. Especially since we had the empty car next to this one to just toss it all into." He shrugged, a kinda shy smile on his face.

"True enough," I laughed, the two of us falling into a small silence before I decided to see what my pack mates were up to, "So...you and Erica…" I looked up only to wish I hadn't. Boyd was looking at me with a stony face that seemed to ask me it I had a death wish. I cleared my throat. "Nevermind, you're right it's too early in the relationship…. I'll just ask later, it's fine." He looked at me again with a look that declared he _would_ kill me. "Or, you know...never. Just forget I said anything."

I didn't even look up, but rather felt him relax and seem to shake his head with a small chuckle at my nosiness. I filed away the symptoms of wolfsbane poisoning and my notes on bone resetting into the 'werewolf health tips' tab, enjoying the quiet company that Boyd provided. There wasn't a need to talk about nothing like with Erica or this sort of quiet awkward tension like with Isaac. Derek usually didn't spend time alone with any of us, so it was nice to have decent company for a change. Then I realized that the only papers I didn't see were the ones I wouldn't want him to see and I was out of papers in my pile. Closing my eyes slowly, I took a deep breath and looked to Boyd, who was reading the last two articles with an amused look on his face.

"So uh, _Wolf Mating_ and _How mating affects the pack life_, huh?" He looked at me with a smirk on his face, "Is this about your line of questioning or about a certain shaggy headed teen that has been acting nine kinds of crazy the past few days?"

"I uh...well really it's just…" I turned away, jumping at the sudden sight of Erica in my doorway. "Oh, hey, Erica! Does Derek need me now?"

"Yeah, you guys are heading out in a few minutes." She looked around the room, "Like what you did to the place. Boyd, you ready? Derek said we're good for the day."

Boyd nodded, leaving the papers behind and giving me a look that clearly said 'we'll talk about this later.' I rolled my eyes and followed them out, pausing to grab my phone and keys to the clinic to return to Deaton. I've been skipping out of work for a while now, and I haven't exactly answered his calls to see if I was okay. I didn't even know he was involved with this until recently. We went to the Clinic in silence, Isaac in the back glaring holes into the back of my head as I sat next to Derek, my hands thumbing my keys nervously. When we got there Scott was at the door, unlocking it when we approached it, an annoyed expression on his face.

"What's he doing here?" I followed Derek, Isaac close behind me, some fruit chews he'd gotten in the back of the car in his hand, "You said you were bringing, Steph...and only Steph."

Derek just kept walking crossing the front gate, which suddenly sent a chill down my spine, "I need him."

Scott followed him, "I don't trust him."

Isaac walked next to me, his empty hand in his pocket, and his cocky attitude back. "Yeah, well, he doesn't trust you either." He looked at me, "Fruit chew?"

I gave him a 'really' expression, making him shrug as Derek turned around, Isaac and I walking past him, both of us leaning on the desk and Scott leaning against the front gate. "And You know what? Derek really doesn't care."

"Why didn't Steph get the memo we were going to be referring go ourselves in third person?" I said, trying to show them how childish they were being, "Is that a new pack thing? 'Cause I've already missed out on the Leather jacket trend."

Derek shot me a glare, making me smile widely and he sighed, "Now where's the vet? Is he gonna help us or not?"

I jumped at the feeling of my old bosses hand on my shoulder, tensing at the unwelcome contact, "That depends." I relaxed when he let go, getting a concerned look from Isaac. I shook my head, not wanting to to talk about it, and Deaton started to speak again, "Your friend, Jackson. Are we planning to kill him or save him?" He looked pointedly at Derek as if telling him which one he wanted to hear.

Derek and Scott spoke up at the same time, The alpha saying "Kill him" And the teen saying "Save him."

Scott looked to Derek, "Save him." Derek searched Scott's eyes for a second before sighing in consent, Scott looking to the Vet, "Save him."

We were ushered inside, Isaac and I standing between Scott and Derek at the observation table while Deaton placed a tray of glass bottles with celtic symbols onto the table. Isaac reached for one of them as the Doc went through them, but Derek Grabbed his wrist, tossing it away.

"Watch what you touch." He snapped, looking to the doctor s he rifled through the jars.

Isaac leaned against the table, looking up at the doctor, "So, what are you? Some kind of witch?" He had a silly smile on his face as if he was half expecting some sort of affirmative reply. I just rubbed my forehead with my thumb and my middle and pointer fingers joined together.

"No," He shook his head, his eyes steeled at Isaac, "I'm a veterinarian." Isaac nodded, with an 'oh' expression and he dropped the jar in his hand back into the tray. "Unfortunately, I don't see anything here that's going to be an effective defense against a paralytic toxin." He stood up straight, looking to Derek, who looked at him with a concerned expression.

"We're open to suggestions."

Isaac and I shared a look before he looked up, "What about an effective offense?"

Derek spoke in an annoyed tone, "We already tried. I nearly took its head off. And Argent emptied an entire clip into it. The thing just gets back up."

I crossed my arms, " And when I fought it, I cut through several arteries, but it just kept fighting...kicked my ass even."

Deaton looked at us with interest, "Has it shown any weaknesses?"

Derek still had his eyes intent on Deaton, "Well, one - it can't swim."

"Does that go for Jackson as well?"

I laughed while Scott spoke up, Deaton looking at us, "No. He's the captain of the swim team."

"Essentially, you're trying to catch two people." He turned around, pulling out a small token from the cabinet. Isaac stood up next to me as Deaton was turning back to us, holding the token out to us, "A puppet - and a puppeteer." He placed it down on the table, "One killed the husband, but the other had to take care of the wife. Do we know why?"

Scott shook his head, "I don't think Jackson could do it. His mother died pregnant too, and she was maybe murdered. I think he couldn't let the same thing happen to someone else."

Isaac looked down in though, "How do you know it's not part of the rules? The Kanima kills murderers. If Jackson kills the wife, then the baby dies too."

Scott looked at him, "Does that mean your father was a murderer?"

Isaac looked off into the room, a strange expression on his face, "Wouldn't surprise me if he was."

I bit my lip, "So how do we stop it? If they are following what we found in the book, then how do we stop it from killing more people?" _Will I be able to live if we can't stop it?_ I looked over at Deaton fearfully, leaning slightly onto Isaac. My shoulder barely touched his, but the contact somehow calmed me, making me feel centered.

Deaton looked down, but then got an idea, "Hold on. The book says they're bonded, right?" Derek nodded, "What if the fear of water isn't coming from Jackson, but from the person controlling him?" He opened a jar of black dust, "What if something that affects the Kanima" He shook the dust into a circle around the token, "also affects its master?"

Isaac and I looked up at Deaton, confusion etched in our faces, "Meaning what?" We said, sharing a look and turning away from each other awkwardly as Scott spoke up.

"Meaning we can catch them. Both of them."

* * *

We went back to the Substation, Isaac and I going back to our respective cars. I sighed, moving over to my desk and plugging my phone into it's charger, setting an alarm for school tomorrow. I jumped when a voice sounded behind me.

"So Boyd tells me you are looking into Mating and Pack life in wolves?" I spun around to face my Alpha, not sure what to say in response. "Why didn't you just come to me?"

"I'm not sure myself. I'm very used to having to learn and do things on my own, so...old habits I guess." I said, moving to the bed and handing my Kanima folder to him, hoping to distract from the conversation that was about to happen. " I actually wrote up various notes on the Kanima and some ideas I had….in case you wanted to-" I looked away, "Okay, fine, what is it you want me to say, Derek? That I'm terrified of what I don't know? That I can barely let anyone touch me, but suddenly Isaac shows up and it takes my entire being not to touch him and it scares the hell out of me?!" I gasped, looking next to me at the car.

"He's not there. I had him go to the other side of the building for some time with the new punching bag. You know, since you keep breaking them." I laughed, running my unoccupied hand through my hair, the ponytail having been removed on the ride back. "I've heard of this though, which is good and bad…"

"You say that and it makes me think that I wasn't wrong when I found these…" I said, opening the binder to my notes on Mating. "They are all pretty spot on…" I turned to the lined papers that held my ongoing list of characteristics.

"What are these?" Derek looked at two neatly written columns with Isaac and I's names.

"I uh...I'm sure you've noticed I've been refraining from any real contact with Isaac." I said, sitting on my bed in defeat, my eyes cast down at my hands that trembled slightly against my legs. "And that he's uh….he's pretty angry about it."

"Yeah, well, I've noticed his possessiveness seems to have been restrained, much like your contact. Though I have to ask, Steph...is it Restraint or Evasion that is keeping you away from Isaac." I looked up at him, his eyes, seeing right through me, "I saw the way you reacted to Deaton, a man you trust, touching you today. And from what you told me, I can see why you're scared, but are you letting that get in the way of the other emotions you're feeling."

I sighed, laughing slightly, "I um...I don't even know anymore, but before I can figure anything out when it comes to him, I need to figure out how to keep everyone safe...I can't-" I choked back a sob I didn't even realize rose in my throat. "I can't let my emotions get in the way of another person's safety. I think part of you realized that when you're having me and Boyd stay with you. You knew I wouldn't be able to focus on taking down the Kanima if I was worried about Isaac."

Derek stood at the door, nodding slightly, "I had my suspicions. Like I said before. You're too much like Scott than I like, but you're also like Stiles and hate to follow what I say. So we'll see tomorrow night just how strong your restraint is...even if you are avoiding having to face it." He turned around, making to leave, "Try to get some sleep, Isaac intimidated Jackson into rescinding his statement for you over himself, stop spitting in his face by skipping school."

He left, leaving me to flop into my back and think about what he said, making me realized just how scared I was that I was internalizing all of my feelings to try and save those who I care about.

* * *

_Okay, so there's some minor Stephek (or Sterek if you want to be ironic) and Stoyd friendship moments! I hope you guys liked it! I'm not sure how I feel about the ending, but I wanted them to have this conversation, and maybe revisit it later, since the other idea I had for this conversation wouldn't have fit. Anyway, you know the drill! Fave, Follow, Review or even just message me and tell me how I'm doing! _

_Hugs to everyone! _

_~Gwen_


	12. Emotionally Compromised

12

_Hey loves! Hope you enjoyed the last chapter! I don't really have much to say before this one, so I'm just __gonna__ jump right in! _

_**Disclaimer: I very sadly don't own Isaac, but I do own Steph and all of this irritating tension that they possess!**_

* * *

Chapter 12: Emotionally Compromised

I sat in the back of Stiles' Jeep, listening to the two of them talking about how they needed to get tickets, but my mind was reflecting on my talk with Derek as we pulled into the school parking lot. What did he mean when he when he said that he had heard about what I was talking about? I hadn't even said much to him, just explained the pull I had to him. It just didn't make any sense to me. The car jolted to a stop as Stiles parked in front of the school, jarring me out of my thoughts.

Scott got out of the passenger seat, slinging his backpack on, as I crawled out and next to him, "There's got to be some other way to get tickets, right?"

Stiles, jumped down, from the car, his own backpack on one shoulder as he slammed the door shut and he met us on the sidewalk, "It's a secret show. There's only one way, and it's a secret."

I tensed at the sight of Matt approaching us, still very uncomfortable around him. He ended up only addressing the guys, thankfully ignoring my presence entirely. I took a few steps away, noticing Isaac was standing near the doors, watching their conversation. Steeling myself, I bit the bullet and moved to talk to him, standing next to him and looking at my friends talk with my suspect.

"Hey there." I said, wincing at how fake I had sounded, "Any pop quizzes or projects that I should know about?"

He clenched his jaw, "I don't know, maybe you should attend class more often."

"I-" I sighed, "I suppose I deserve that one. Look I just want to say I'm sorry we haven't really talked since-"

"Look, just stay with McCall and Stilinski, Steph. I have to get to practice to talk to Coach. See you in class."

I watched him leave with a defeated sigh, turning around to see Stiles yelling at Matt, "Your little bump on the head is about this high on our list of problems right now!" I covered my mouth to try to hide my chuckle as he dropped his hand to be about an inch from the ground. Scott moved up to talk to Matt before they headed my way. I waited for them at the door, ignoring their conversation until they showed up where I was.

"How's your back feel, Stilinski?" I said when they were within earshot, "Did some serious leaning there. It's a shame I wasn't there to take advantage of a glorious look at dat ass of yours."

"Shut up, McGrath or I won't let you cheat off of me during the Econ test today."

"_Shit_ there's a test in Econ?! On _What__?!_ We only _just_ had a midterm!" I groaned as we walked to the boys locker room, stopping at the door. "Hey, see if Danny can score you guys tickets! I'll see if Lydia has any way to get some."

Unfortunately Lydia was nowhere to be found along with Allison so I did my make up work in the library and hung near the locker room, waiting for Isaac or the boys to appear. I heard coach's office door slam and then Danny talking to Scott and Stiles.

"Sorry, but I only got two myself."

Stiles sounded vaguely annoyed, "What - do you even have a date, yet?"

"I'm-" Danny was offended, a sharp edge to his voice, "working on it."

Stiles spoke again, a type of warning wafting off Scott that even I could sense, "Okay, okay. Hear me out. You give us the tickets, and you devote your life to abstinence and just -"

There was the sound of two people being pulled up by their shirts and Isaac's cocky asshole voice came out, "How do you two losers even survive?"

Scott finally spoke, "What are we supposed to do? No one's even selling."

I slipped into the room just in time to see Isaac spot two freshman who were holding tickets. He moved between the my two friends patting Stiles' chest condescendingly, "Wait here, boys."

Scott looked on, as he approached them, while I snuck behind a locker so they didn't see me, "What is he gonna - ?"

I held my mouth in my hand as he threw the kids against the locker, looking away as more clattering happened, Stiles' commentary providing all I needed to know.

"Ow." **Crash **"Oh, my - yup." **clatter** "That's excessive." **Smash-clink** "That'll bruise." When the clattering stopped, I looked over to see Scott and Stiles standing in shock. Scott saying "Ow." And Stiles saying "Wow, okay…"

Isaac walked back up to them, slapping tickets to their chests and turning around, and smirking when he saw me, "Enjoy the show." They just stood there as he walked to his locker, which ironically was at the other end of the cluster I was standing at, most of the guys gone, and the two he had beaten, limping against two other friends on their way to the nurse. "What are you doing in here Steph?"

"I- Oh, I was just….I was…" I turned to try and explain myself only to have him remove his t-shirt and jersey, revealing lean muscle and marble skin, making me completely shocked into speechlessness. "Was...was just…."

"You know a full sentence might help you out a little, there." He said, pulling a dark blue v-neck over his head with a smirk, allowing me to focus again.

"Gee thanks for that Mr. "I'm not very good at Writing." I think I can manage a little better than you on my own." I snapped, my head moving instantly to the side as he pulled his shorts off, a flush on my face, and a hand cupped around the side of my face to prevent me from peeking. "I was just...waiting to talk to you and I didn't want to look like a creep standing outside the door, so I snuck in...which I now notice makes me look even worse, but luckily most of the team is gone and it's all people I know."

"I thought you were supposed to be hanging around McCall and Stilinski at school." He said, looming over me so I was forced to look at him again thankfully with jeans and his boots on. _Oh please, you totally wanted to see him without the- _I closed my eyes, listening to him talk, and hoping he just took it as a look of guilt. "I mean, that _is _what Derek wanted you to do right?"

"Okay, can you just cut the shit?!" I shouted, pushing him against the locker, startling myself and him. I stood there for a second gathering my thoughts as well as allowing myself thrill of feeling his muscles tensing under my hand. "I came to thank you for even allowing me to be here right now since I noticed I hadn't done so yet. And to tell you that we do need to talk about whatever is going on with you and this attitude of yours. I'm sick of it! I'm being kept on my toes guessing which one of you I'll have to deal with at a given time and it's exhausting!"

"Oh, so _now_ you want to talk? Hm...maybe I'll just make you wait for days at a time. Since that what you seem mean by we'll talk later and all." He stood up, looming again and forcing me to look up.

"I…" I looked down, trying to find a way to explain myself, but sighed, running a hand through my waves, "I gotta get to class, I'm late for Econ…."

And I left the locker room, still unsure what was going on with me and why despite all of my anger that I had the urge to rip all of Isaac's clothes off right then and there in the boys locker room.

* * *

The rest of the school day went without incident, or rather without any physical incidents. Instead I was plagued with very very inappropriate daydreams and fantasies I'd only heard of teenagers having. Ever since the kiss I had been clamping them down, but today, I just couldn't get them out of my head. I knew that I needed to actually sit down and talk to Derek about it, but after last night, I was terrified to. I shook the thoughts from my head, instead focusing on how I was going to have to prevent the Argents from killing Jackson, and quite possibly me and my pack mates as they currently stood in front of us. Isaac and Erica had just gone inside and Stiles was working on making a perimeter of Mountain Ash, which was the black powder I'd seen at Deaton's and apparently creates some form of force field that supernatural beings can't get through. The plan was to trap the Kanima inside and knock it out with some ketamine and hope it took out the master too. Not that I was going to see this plan in effect, since I was standing with Boyd as we flanked Derek who stood in front of Allison's father and a few more hunters. I gulped, my senses muddled by the smell of Wolfsbane in their guns and weapons.

Argent looked to Derek and Boyd, and I looked to the rest of the hunters, who probably thought I didn't belong with the two of them. While I tried to look as as my pack mates in my dark black tanktop and jeans with a pair lace up boots that rose to my knees, Boyd and Derek were nearly exploding out of their hoodie and henley, their muscles more obvious than my lean tonality. Argent spoke up, looking to each of us warningly.

"Derek, kids, Back off."

Derek laughed slightly, "Back off? That - that's really all you've got? I got to be honest, Chris. I was really expecting more from the, uh, big, bad veteran werewolf hunter."

I crossed my arms, hoping to look more confident than I felt as they all drew their guns out and 'Chris' smiled unkindly, "Okay, then. How about "didn't anyone ever tell you not to bring claws to a gunfight?"

Boyd and I backed off, "That one sounded pretty good."

The three of us rolled in different directions, Boyd getting hit and my nose stinging with the smell of wolfsbane and blood. Derek and Boyd had moved together and were hiding from the volley, while I looked to the building, noticing that Stiles hadn't finished the Mountain Ash circle. I was filled with a sense of dread and thought about Isaac and Erica who were inside and still following the plan as if nothing were wrong. Scott probably knew about the argents, but Erica and Isaac probably didn't realize just how bad it was.

"Derek! They're not gonna be prepared for this! I -I need to go help Isaac and Erica! The mountain ash isn't up still!" I bolted towards the door, ducking and dodging gunfire. I hissed as one of them graced my, and I clawed at the wolfsbane that burned into my flesh.

"Steph!" Derek shouted, "Steph get back here, you're going to-" I made it inside before I could hear what he had to say. Music blasted through the room while bodies grinding and jumping into each other with the pulsating beat. I saw Allison with Matt, but had to push my way through the crowd to find Isaac and Erica. Little did I know what I was going to find.

Erica was between Jackson and Isaac, all three of their bodies moving together with the beat while the little blonde _slut_ had her hands curled around both of their necks, rotating her hips into them both. I felt an inexpiable rage course through me as she kissed Isaac, and he just let it happen, a smile on both of their faces. She rolled her head around in a look very similar to ecstasy as they both trailed their lips along her neck and felt her waist and arms. I felt my eyesight go red and had to clench my clawed hands into fists, cutting into my palm to calm myself. I finally realized what was going on when Isaac pulled out the syringe with the ketamine attached to it, about to put it into Jackson's neck. Just as he lifted it up, I saw Jackson claw into Erica and knock the syringe out of Isaac's hand, whispering "She belongs to me" in an almost demonic voice. I pushed forward, using my rage as a way to get to Jackson, seeing Isaac struggle to get the syringe again. I grabbed him by the face, doing the only thing I could think of to get back at Isaac-which confused me- as well as distract Jackson so we could take him down. I grabbed his neck, and pulled my face up to his. Pressing my lips against his, I tried not to shrink away when he wrapped his arms round my waist. He was about to dig his claws into me when I felt him relax into my arms, falling to me and Isaac who had finally decided to show up, and shoot Jackson up with the ketamine.

"Took you long enough!" I growled, wiping my mouth as I looked for Erica. "Now take him to wherever you guys were meant to while I get little passed out blondie."

He nodded, making a face of disgust at Jackson while I went to get the girl I used to call my best friend out of the throng of horny ass teenagers. When I found her, I dragged her to a wall, my hands at her throat and my eyes glowing in fury. Her eyes widened in fear and shock as she fully woke up from the blow Jackson had place on her.

"Steph what are you-"

"If you so much as _think_ about doing that with Isaac again, plan or no plan, I _will_ find you and I _will _make sure you live just enough to regret it." I snarled, dropping her to a gasping heap on the floor. Surprisingly, she started to laugh when she stood up. "What the _hell_ is so funny?"

"You really don't see it, do you?" she laughed, fixing her hair and leading me to where Isaac would be with Jackson. "Why do you think you weren't included in this part of the plan? Derek _knew_ you would react this way. I'm guessing he tried to stop you from coming in too."

I growled slightly, returning my eyes to normal as we got back into the crowd for a few seconds, "He might have, but I was kind of lacking in faith when I noticed our little border wasn't up still and the Argents were out there armed with wolfsbane. Also, being the smallest of the three out there, I figured I wouldn't be much use once the fighting started. Those guys can take out two guys with one blow alone, I would be stuck on one while they cleaned house."

She rolled her eyes, "whatever you say," she sighed, opening a door to reveal us in a weird bathroom like area. Isaac was leaning against the sink, glaring at me as I came in, but upon noticing the fading bruise around Erica's neck, it turned into a confused head tilt. I shrugged, my head, indicating to Jackson, who was slumped against a chair. Suddenly, Stiles burst through the door, causing us all to jump into a defensive stance. Me being closest to the door, I pushed him into the wall next to it, letting go as he flailed around.

"Uh, no, no, no! Just me, it's just me. Don't freak. Wait, Steph? What are you doing here?!" He looked to me confused.

I shrugged, "You took too long with the magic force field."

He stuck his tongue out at me, "Well it's up now, so Nya!" He gestured to Jackson, "He okay?"

Isaac walked over to him, "Well - let's find out." He flicked out his claws on one hand and went to slash at Jackson. However, Jackson didn't even get up, only lifted his arm to grab Isaac's arm and twist breaking it, "God -" He groaned. pulled away going back to the sink and sitting next to it, cradling his arm.

Stiles spoke as I pushed past the other two to Isaac and helped him fix the arm so it could heal, shaking away the dull ache I felt myself. "Okay, no one does anything like that again, okay?"

Isaac looked at me thankfully, then to Stiles, "I thought the ketamine was supposed to put him out." He groaned.

Stiles sighed, "Yeah, well, apparently this is all we're going to get. So let's just hope that whoever's controlling him just decided to show up tonight."

Jackson suddenly opened his eyes, his head moving as if he were possessed, and when he spoke, he used the same demonic whispering as before, "I'm here. I'm right here with you."

I clutched onto Isaac, who wrapped an arm around me, as we looked at him nervously, "Um...is that supposed to happen?!" I looked to Stiles nervously then back to Isaac. We both remembered we were pissed off at each other suddenly, and abruptly let go, causing Erica to scoff in our direction.

Stiles ignored us, moving in front of Jackson and crouching down to his level, "Jackson, is that you?"

"Us." Jackson replied, "We're all here."

Stiles turned to us, "So Steph? uhm were you aware of this type of reaction in your notes?"

I bit my lip, "No I wasn't, _this_? This is just crazy." I still was hovering over Isaac, but I was unsure whether it was because of a lack of space in the room or because of my basic need to feel his presence in order to prevent me from freaking out.

Stiles turned back to our captive, "Are you the one killing people?"

"We are the ones killing murderers."

"So all the people you've killed so far - "

"Deserved it." Jackson spoke with conviction, but he was starting to go cross eyed which was started to creep me out.

Stiles sighed, "See, we got a little rule book that says you only go after murderers." He spoke very calmly, which impressed me to no end given the death grip I now had on the sleeve of Isaac's two-toned grey and hooded henley, my hands shaking like I was out in the northern winter air and not in a hot steel walled bathroom.

Jackson's voice continued to sent chills down my spine, "Anything can break if enough pressure is applied."

Stiles tilted his head, speaking as if to a three year old, "All right, so the people you're killing are all murderers then?"

"All. Each. Every one"

"Well, who did they murder?"

Jackson spoke with such conviction he shook slightly in the chair, "Me."

Stiles looked at him confused, "Wait, what? What do you mean?"

"They murdered me." Stiles looked to us confused, but we were all moving to the door in an effort to move away from Jackson whose eyes had started to redden and become Kanima-esque, Stiles looked back and jumped back up with us, "They murdered me."

We all watched him cautiously, but I pressed against Isaac's side, my arms snaked around his arm as I saw Jackson's arm, come up, also shifted. Stiles spoke up, looking at Jackson, but his voice shaking slightly, "Okay, all right. More ketamine. The man needs ketamine. Come on."

Isaac moved slightly, his body still blocking me from Jackson, but holding the bottle to Stiles. I looked at them from behind Stiles, where I had been pushed, only to see it was empty. "We don't have any more." Isaac said looking to Stiles nervously.

Stiles' voice was one of disbelief as he looked at the bottle and then Isaac, "You used the whole bottle?" He took it from him, only to have Erica tap and he shoulder and we saw Jackson half shifted and now standing, Screeching at us, "Um - okay, out, everybody out."

Isaac was pressed against me and Stiles, pushing for us to get out the door, "Go, go, go, go."

Stiles pushed out in front of the three of us,Isaac was in the middle with an arm hovering protectively over me. Stir stood with his arms over Isaac and Erica,"Okay, find something to move in front of the door."

Suddenly there was a screeching and the wall gave out, the fully shifted kanima running out and into the rest of the Rave.

"What do we do now…" I whispered, still sort of crushed between the corner of or the wall and the door by Isaac, glancing at my watch, "Everybody's going to be leaving soon…"

We all moved away from the door, "We find Derek," Erica said, and we started for the door, while people headed out.

Stiles was out first, with Erica behind him, Isaac and I a little behind. Isaac still had this sort of protective look about him, when I was the one who ran to his rescue to begin with. We got out and found Derek there, but were stopped at the door by the Mountain Ash. Isaac and I crouched down, looking at the line, then up at Erica all of us with worried expressions on our faces.

Stiles, being Stiles, got excited, "Oh, my God. It's working! OH this is-" He grunted with excitement, "I did something."

"And I'm really happy for you Stiles…" I said, standing up and biting my lip, "but now we're stuck here with the Kanima...that we know wants to kill someone...and may even want to kill us…or at least me."

Derek looked up at me, "And now you see one of the reasons for why I wanted you with me and Boyd. Don't make me bring up the second." Derek looked at me, but before I could say something, we all heard a howl, "Scott?"

Stiles looked to the Alpha "What?"

Derek looked past us and into the venue, "Break it."

Stiles spread his arms out, "What? No way!"

Derek waved an arm at the building, "Scott's dying!"

Stiles looked at him, freaking out slightly, "Okay, what? How do you know that?"

Derek groaned, " Oh, my God, Stiles, I just know! Break it!"

While I yelled, "Dear god, Stiles just break it already!"

Stiles looked at each of us, "Ah -" He dropped to the ground and waved his hand over the line, the dust flurrying to form a small gap. Derek ran inside while he looked down Disappointed.

"What do we do now?!" Erica said, as the three of us crossed the line, rubbing her side absently. "Where's Boyd?!"

I looked to the club, then to the parking lot, sniffing for Boyd's scent of aftershave and the wolfsbane I knew his wounds would have, "He's in the car where we parked it, but we can't leave Derek alone, what if he needs help?! I mean what if he gets in trouble helping scott?!"

Isaac tapped my shoulder, "He would want us out of here when the cops show up…"

Stiles stood up, leaning against his Jeep, "What, why would the cops show up?"

Isaac turned to me and Erica, "Don't you guys smell it? There's human blood in there…" He pointed inside, "A lot of Human Blood…"

* * *

We decided to wait until Derek showed up, only for him to yell at us to leave while he had Stiles take him an unconscious Scott to Deaton. Erica and Boyd were curled up on a spare mattress we had found, not wanting to have Boyd go home in case he got worse, or knowing what we would have been able to say to his parents when they saw him. Isaac had left while I watched over them, making sure to dress up Boyd's wounds the best I could and making sure that Erica didn't have any venom in her system.

She looked at me as I fussed over an unconscious Boyd, pulling one of Derek's shirts onto him, so that he didn't have to sleep in a bloody shirt.

"You know it meant nothing, right? That it was all just a way to get Jackson distracted."

I didn't look up, changing the dressing I had on his stomach before pulling the shirt down all the way, "Erica...I really don't want to kill you, so can we just forget about what happened tonight? I really don't want to feel that terrifying rage again."

She sighed, curling back up next to Boyd, I had made her sit up while I tended to him. "Okay...But thank you...for showing up I mean… who knows if Isaac could have drugged him if you hadn't shown up and laid on on Jackson. Really took one for the team on that one."

I laughed slightly, giving a small shudder at the memory of how cold the kiss had been, and how unfeeling it was on both accounts, "Yea, well...definitely not one of my best moments. I nearly got clawed up myself." I looked down at her, "Get some sleep, okay? And come get me if Boyd gets worse." She nodded and I headed off to my car. I walked in, spinning around and flopping on my bed, only for the mattress to grunt and curl around my head. Bolting upright, I turned around to see Isaac wincing slightly with his hand on his stomach. "_Isaac!?_ What are you doing in my bed!"

"Ugh...You said you wanted to talk today." He shrugged, "But then again that was before you nearly killed Erica and all of us today with stunts you pulled at the rave."

I walked to the other end of the car with a scoff, peeling off my boots, getting rid of the extra couple of inches the thick soles gave me. "Sure it was me that nearly got us killed. I wasn't the one who got so carried away with feeling Erica up that I didn't realize that Jackson wasn't falling for your little threesome act." I snapped, feeling the very rage I was trying to Avoid with a capital 'A'.

"That didn't stop you from laying one on him anyway!" Isaac snarled, standing up and standing about halfway between the bed and where I stood.

"That was to cover up your fumble! I knew you were coming with the Ketamine, but he was on the movie and I needed to stop him!" I growled, clenching my fists, "Don't start with this shit about me and other guys when I haven't done anything close to what you did tonight!"

"Oh, you mean when I pretended to be attracted to Erica as a distraction technique?" He looked at me darkly, a furious edge to his words, "Well take a bit of your own advice, Steph and _Get over it_. As I recall I'm not your boyfriend! So stop trying to have it both ways and thinking you have any say in the matter!"

"Well maybe after that kiss I wanted you to be! " I shouted, finally letting out what had been keeping me from him the past few days. I sighed, looking at him ashamed while his eyes widened in shock. "Maybe I've just been trying to process whatever the hell is making me feel so drawn to you…God!" I threw my hand up into my hair, yanking at my roots for a few seconds before throwing them back down to my sides. "I can't get you out of my head, I can't stay calm unless I can feel or sense you nearby! It's like there's this Rope that I can't see, but it's pulling me towards you and I'm getting closer and closer every day and it scares the shit out of me! I was so overcome by Jealousy that I nearly _killed_ Erica with my own two hands!" I stepped forward, glaring up at him. "You have me breaking every rule I've ever had! You have me emotionally compromised in more ways than I can imagine, and you don't seem to care! And the scariest part of it all is that I don't want it to stop."

I searched his eyes for a sign. Some clue that he felt the same way too. All I could see was confusion and shock. We stood there staring at each other in silence until I realized my mistake.

I closed my eyes, allowing a single tear to slide along my cheek," "You know what? Just forget I said anything...I understand now…" _What did I tell you? Of course he doesn't feel the same, it's just in your head…_ I moved around him, my face red with shame and embarrassment. I felt my arm jerk behind me, stopping me from moving. I turned to see Isaac's hand holding it, his blue eyes burning with an unfamiliar intensity.

"Did you really think I was going to let you say something like that and just walk away?" His voice was strained, and I looked away, scared that it was anger or disgust,"Just give me a few seconds to absorb everything. I mean, shit, You didn't say anything to me for days when I _tried_ to tell you."

My eyes widened, and my head snapped up to look at him, "What...so that night, in the woods you were…?" I searched his eyes trying to see what he was trying to tell me.

He laughed, letting go of my arm only to pull me against him by my waist, "I don't know about you, but I don't just kiss someone that way and have it mean nothing." He leaned forward, his face dangerously close mine, "And I sure as hell know that it didn't mean nothing to you either."

He smirked at me, but I rolled my eyes, wanting to wipe it off his face. And so I did. I grabbed both of sides of his face and crashed my lips onto his, pouring all of the emotion and need that I could into it, trying to convey what I couldn't express. And the most beautiful thing about it was that he kissed me back with just the same intensity as before. Only this time? It was even better.

* * *

_And they are FINALLY together! I hope you guys liked it! I loved writing this chapter, and I've had it cooked up in my head for a while now! ;)_

_Comment, fave, follow! Just let me know what you think!_

_Hugs and Kisses to all!_

_~Gwen_


	13. What Grounds The Wolf

10

_It finally happened guys! I finally put them together! They finally did it! I'm so proud~! Even though it's my fault they took so long… anyway, to celebrate, I am going to start off with Stephaac fluff! I've been waiting for them to do this for a really long time! _

_**To **__**yourfictionismyreality: Thank you so much for your enthusiastic Review I'm so glad that you liked it so much! An I love all of you readers you make me feel validated! So thank you again, and enjoy this little shout out! **_

_**Disclaimer: I don't own Isaac, I don't own Teen Wolf, BUT I do own Steph and this story! :D**_

* * *

Chapter 13: What Grounds a wolf

Long fingers gently combed through my hair, making me nuzzle myself into Isaac's neck, nipping it playfully to show him I was awake. He chuckled lightly, allowing me to watch my my hand bob up and down with this chest, a warm happiness coming through both of us. Aside from the pack teasing us about 'finally' getting together, we've had a low key weekend and we were spending our time off from school together. I sighed happily, thinking about our date at the park and the playful sparring sessions that turned into very heated make-out sessions that usually ended with Derek yelling at us to get a room during training. Spending late nights with either me tutoring him in Chem or him helping me with Algebra. We even fixed his car up to be like mine, only we've been spending more time in mine lately, just laying content in each other's arms. He claims I have the better mattress, but I think he just likes that we're just one car more secluded from the rest of the pack so we didn't have any interruptions. It has just been five days us just basically fallen into a comfortable rhythm with each other and I couldn't ask for a better spring break.

"Morning, Love," He mumbled, his morning voice sending pleasant chills down my spine as he pressed a kiss to my temple. "Sorry if I woke you. You looked so relaxed, I couldn't bring myself to move."

I hummed slightly, tilting his head down so that I could give him a kiss, for once not really caring about the disarray of my hair from sleep and his playing with it, or that I most likely had terrible morning breath. Usually I woke up first and would rush off to brush my death and fix my hair since I'm still a little self conscious around him. He smiled into the kiss, cupping his hand around my jaw to pull me closer. I let out a muffled laugh and pushed him away slightly, rubbing my hand along his chest.

"We are not going to be like that this early in the day. We did enough of that yesterday." I said resting into the crook of his neck again, "In fact, I think we should just hide away here, and not have to worry about anything." I turned myself into him some more, not wanting to deal with the day. I felt tension I didn't even noticed was there release from my shoulders as Isaac absent mindedly started to play with my hair again, his fingers, twirling the coppery strands around and letting them fall into makeshift curls.

"You nervous about tonight?" He said, his cheek resting against the side of my head as I nodded slightly, "Do you want to talk about it?" My hair tousled next to my face as I shook my head against him. He brought two fingers to my chin, lifting my gaze up to meet his. "You know I won't let anything happen to you, right?"

I smiled, placing my hand on his cheek, and leaving a soft peck on his lips, "I know, I just… I want to be in control of it. I don't want to be chained up like an animal." I shuddered slightly, thinking of the bonds and how they were going to restrict into a small space like the one I used to live in before I took the Bite.

Isaac sighed, his chest making me rise and fall with it, Steadying me and keeping me from my thoughts. "I know… It's going to be hard on all of us."

"It's you I worry about…" I said, pulling myself up so that I could look down at him, conveying to him my concern. He sat up with a small smile, his eyes a stormy spiral of emotion in blue. He pulled me into a hug, his warmth surrounding me like a blanket as he rested his chin on top of my head.

"I'll be okay." I felt my hands tremble as my fingers fluttered along his sides, "Hey, I promise I will." He looked down at me and I cursed myself for my hands giving me away.

I got up slowly, one of Isaac's v-necks sighing down to my knees as I stood. "I know you will be. It doesn't stop me from worrying about you."

I moved to my clothing, squinching my face as I sorted through my sweaters that hung along the luggage rack of the car. I wanted to dress comfortably, but wear something I wouldn't mind getting damaged if anything went bad tonight. I smiled, looking to one of my favorites sweaters. It was an extremely worn out soft grey v-neck that fell to about my mid thigh and I could slip into a pair of 'dark wash' jeggings (who give a shit about those anyway, if they rip, good riddance) and wear my motorcycle boots. I was about to put my hands on the hem of the shirt, but felt Isaac's hands covered them making me lean into him with a smile as he pulled the shirt up to hold my waist.

"Have I ever told you how incredibly sexy you look in nothing but my shirt?" I flushed as he leaned down to whisper in my ear. "And it is even better when you start blushing like that?"

I twisted in his arms, wrapping my own around his neck, "Only about every time you try to stop me from changing." I said, kissing him long and slow before pushing him back with a wink. "Now go on over to your car and get dressed." He pouted slightly, trying to give him is best puppy eyes. "Don't even try that with me, Lahey! It's not going to work this time." He sighed, relenting and kissing my forehead before leaving so that I could change. I had just finished when Erica showed up with a really pretty lace top over a grey spaghetti strap with skinny jeans and ankle boots. Her hair had been straightened, but kept it's volume and she had red blush and lipstick on. In other words, the exact opposite of what I was doing.

"God I thought he would never leave," she said, sitting on the bench next to me, "Have I told you guys that you are so cute that it makes me physically ill sometimes?"

I laughed, flushing lightly, glad that we've reached an understanding. We weren't like we were before our wolfleyhood -Stiles term, not mine- but at least we weren't at each other's throats. "I think you've mentioned it before."

"Yea well, you are, but Derek still needs you love bunnies to come out in like five." She said with a slight smile.

"Sure, help me make my bed." She went to pull the top sheet but stopped, giving me a questioning look, "OH God Erica, it's safe! We haven't even-" I bite my lip, "Just help me make the damn bed."

She laughed at my furious blush, "Well sorry if your love bite made me think different."

"My love bite?" I rushed to my mirror examining my neck, sure enough there was a faint line at the junction of my throat to my shoulder. _I do vaguely remember him nipping at me last night, but not like this… _"Didn't think we could get them with the healing and everything."

Erica raised an eyebrow at me, "So you didn't realize you left a matching one on your boy-toy?" _I left a bite on him? Well it was pretty heated… I guess I got carried away..._

I shook my head, "No idea." I said as we finished making the bed and went out to see where Derek was having us meet up. Boyd was sitting in front of the car and Erica stood near him, inside the empty car door while Derek opened up the trunk of chains, just as I reached down to touch it, Isaac appeared, standing over me in a blue pullover and faded jeans, his hand resting on the back of his hips.

He looked down over my shoulder as I traced the pattern, "What is that?"

Boyd spoke, making us look up at him, and Erica looking like she should be bragging about her man, that is if they were even together, "It's a triskele. Spirals mean different things - Past, present, future. Mother, father, child." I said, said looking towards Boyd remembering my notes, "Spirit, Mind Body. Power, Intellect. Love."

Derek nodded, looking between us impressed "You know what it means to me?"

Boyd and I looked at him unsure, "Alpha, beta, omega?"

Derek nodded standing up, "That's right. It's a spiral. Reminds us that we can all rise to one or fall to another." he gestured to Isaac, "Betas can become alphas," He then turned to Erica and Boyd while I stood up myself and pulled Isaac's arm down so that I could entwine our fingers, "but alphas can also fall to betas or even omegas."

Isaac looked at our hands, then to Derek, "Like Scott?"

Derek gave Isaac a look before going to grab some chains, "Scott's with us."

Isaac made a show of looking around, ignoring the warning squeeze I gave his hand, making Derek stand straight again, "Really? Then where is he now?"

"He's looking for Jackson. Don't worry, he's not gonna have it easy tonight either." He leaned down, pulling at the contents of the trunk, "None of us will. There's a price you pay for this kind of power. You get the ability to heal, but tonight you're gonna want to kill anything you can find." he pulled out a belt and handed it to Isaac, who had to pull his hand from mine to take it.

Erica and I laughed slightly, the blonde speaking up, "Good thing I had my period last week, then."

The guys looked at her uncomfortably, then turned to me. I shook my head, waving my hand in front of my chest, "You're good guys, I go _before_ Erica, so I'll only be just as homicidal as you guys."

Derek, tilted his head, holding two head spiked headbands, "Well, these' are for you ladies."

My smile dropped, not looking forward to tonight.

* * *

"I mean I know it's not my first full moon, but it'll hopefully be my first one where I'm conscious through the whole thing, you know?" I said into my phone as I flipped through my notes on the subject in my werewolf binder. Isaac came in, with a slightly confused expression as he saw me talking to myself at my desk.

'_Stiles' _I mouthed, tapping the phone with my pointer finger. He nodded, coming behind me and cupping his hands around my shoulders and massaging them lightly, making me smile up at him appreciatively.

"Yeah, Scott's was rough too, but then his second wasn't much better. So is there anything you wanted to have me print and drop off before I head over to Lydia's tonight?"

I leaned my head back, pulling my hand to twirl my ponytail, not sure if Isaac was tuned into the conversation. He'd been more respectful lately, backing off when I talked to Stiles, but he would still listen in, thinking I couldn't tell until I would trick him into revealing that he'd eavesdropped. "Uh yea, but I'll text it to you."

"Derek listening in on you?"

"Why would Derek be hovering over me in my room?" I said, looking to Isaac with a smile as he gave me a joking squeeze at 'hovering'. '_Love you babe._' I mouthed as Stiles made a groan of recognition.

"Do you have any idea how sad it is that I'm actually looking forward to school on the off chance that I'll get to see you without the boyfriend hanging on you and vice versa?!"

"Don't make me regret telling you beforehand, Little Red." I growled playfully, enjoying my nickname for my human friend.

"What the hell am I Little Red for?!" I winced as he yelled rather loudly into my ear.

"Uh duh, you're human and you hang around wolves? And have a red hoodie you like to wear a lot." I laughed as Isaac gave me a look, "Anyway, I gotta go, the BF awaits."

"Be safe tonight, Steph."

"You too, Stilinski." I hung up, looking up at Isaac, "What's up, Buttercup?"

He rolled his eyes, "You are in _way_ too good of mood right now."

"I always am after getting a shoulder massage from you," I said sweetly turning to my phone and typing '_mating marks_' to Stiles, biting my lip nervously.

"And it has nothing to do with your secret texts to Stiles?" I looked up scoffing as he raised an eyebrow at me. Turning onto my knees in the chair, I smiled, wrapping my arms around his torso.

"Don't tell me you're getting jealous of _Stiles_. I mean I've seen that kid shirtless, and whew," I said, making a disappointed face, "Trust me I don't need to see that again."

He laughed, "Oh, as long as you're staying with me for superficial reasons…" He kissed my temple. "I'll fully disclose that I'm totally in this relationship for your ass."

"Ass and abs a happy couple make." I smiled, nodding in mock thought, "good to know."

We laughed again, pulling apart when Boyd appeared in the doorway, "All right, honeymooners, time to chain up."

I stood up from the chair, holding onto Isaac's hand as we walked out after him, "I really wish he didn't sound so thrilled about that…"

We moved into the car we hung out at this morning, Derek standing there with Erica, clearing out the back of it. We moved so that Isaac was behind Erica and I was next to Boyd who had moved in front of Derek at the car door.

He was getting chained to the two sides of the end, his arms then his waist bound to the bars, "What if we break free?" He asked looking towards Derek with concerned look on his face.

Derek didn't look up from his work, turning to Erica as he finished with Boyd, "Then you'll do anything you can to get out of here. Probably try to kill me, then kill each other and kill anything else with a heartbeat." He looked at Isaac, "I need you to hold her."

Isaac slipped his arm under Erica's, holding her to his chest, "So how come she gets to wear the headband? And why does Steph get the other one?"

Derek started to loosen the screws on it, looking back up at Erica, "Because they'll both be able to withstand more pain than the two of you." Erica laughed while I looked down grimly, "I mean I'm sure Steph wouldn't be opposed to switching if you really wanted one,"

Isaac shook his head, "I'll pass. That's all you, Babe." I smiled as everyone else rolled their eyes at his use of the pet name.

"Gee thanks for that one. Boyfriend of the year with that comment." I offered my hand to Erica, which she shook as Derek looked at her, with a sad look in his eyes

Holding the headband up, he asked, "You ready?"

Erica nodded, trying to prepare herself, her hands turning nervously as I gave her a reassuring squeeze. "Yeah."

We watched as he put the headband on, Erica starting to pant as he twisted. She gasped as it started to break the skin screeching in pain and breaking my hand as she held it, her food stomping as he continued. I don't know how long we stood there watching, Boyd looking helpless and Isaac looking to me, a scared expression on his face. I know he was thinking about when it was my turn and I shook my head, placing my hand over the one clasped with Erica's, trying to provide comfort to her. Shockingly, my hands started to blacken around the vein, Erica looked at me shocked, the guys too busy with her screaming to notice me gasp in pain as well. When it was finished, we both gasped, in mutual pain as I realize what I had done. She nodded her thanks and I smiled as Derek motioned for me to get out of where I was and go down the car.

Isaac and I moved to the benches we were to be chained to at the other end of the car, my hands shaking from what I did for Erica and uncertain if I could go through that on my own. I snapped my hand back in a few places so that it could heal, trying to ignore the dull ache of the bones mending, unaware of the pain the night would hold. I doubled over gasping as the moon started it's ascent for the night. My eyes glowed to and from my wolf and my human sides, my claws itching to be extended. I turned to see Boyd and Erica groaning as well, trying to hold it in. I moved forward, watching Derek bind Isaac to his bench, attaching them to to the legs of the chair as he groaned in his seat. I took deep breaths, holding my hands to Isaac's shoulders in an attempt to calm us both down. He placed the unbound hand over mine, gasping as he turned to Derek, who looked like he wasn't having any problems at all.

"How do you not feel this?"

I winced, panting a few times, "Oh I doubt that… Woah" I steadied myself with the new wave of pain, "He can just… just hide it better."

He nodded, tightening the bonds, "She's right, I feel every second of it."

Isaac looked to me than him, "Then how do you control it?"

Derek looked down still focusing on the bonds, "Find an anchor. Something meaningful to you. Bind yourself to it. Keep the human side in control." He looked up at us, my eyes avoiding his as I thought of mine.

Isaac panted more, making me squeeze his shoulder tighter, his hand tightening around mine with the new wave of physical torment. "What is it for you?"

Derek looked away from him, up at me and then answered, returning to his work, "Anger. But it doesn't have to be that for everybody."

"You mean Scott?"

Derek looked up at me, "Yeah… among other people." He dropped the chains, moving to me, "Alright, that should do it. Time for you Steph… are you sure you want to do the headband-"

He stopped as Isaac jerked his body, ripping himself from my grasp and moving the opposite bench from it's bolted position, a look of worry on all of our faces. As we turned around, we notice erica and Boyd already starting to shift, their breathing hot and their eyes glowing yellow. I gulped, sitting across the little path and at the tale cage like handle next to the door.

"I think you should just tie me up-unngh-" I winced, my wolf screeching to come out, "You should just tie me up however you can while I'm still complacent."

Derek looked at the three who were already struggling, "Good idea."

He set to work, pulling out the chains and clasping them to bars, but I was lost, my human side slowly fading into the dark while my wolf took the front seat, knocking Derek back. Isaac was calling my name, but I couldn't stop, my wolf wanting to go topside and run free, to escape from the confinements my human life held. After it took over, the pain stopped and instead I was filled with an elated feeling of pure and wild freedom. My vision reddened, and my claws were extended.

_So this is what is is like to be completely and totally free with no rules. _My wolf nodded my head, smiling at how naive I was. A cloud darkened over the moon, making me stop just at the stairs, I clenched to the side, letting Derek's words wash over me and chastise the beast within. _Find an Anchor Stephanie! Bind yourself to it and give yourself the upper hand. _

I struggled, panting as I made it outside, my wolf putting up more of a fight than I thought it would, screaming, screeching, clawing, and snarling it's way to the surface in shorts bursts. I lost track of time, my human side waking up in every block or so. Finally I was on all fours, panting as I rested in the middle of the alleyway that started the dominos leading to this very moment. Jerking my muscles to do what I needed, I pulled my phone out of my pocket, trying to open it so that I could see the background. When I finally managed it, I was able to see a picture I had taken of Isaac when he thought I was just scrolling through my phone, His eyes were shining a brilliant blue and his face was one of slight confusion, his hair tousled lightly. I closed my eyes, thinking of him and all that we'd been through together, squeezing the phone as if it would make the image come to life. I screamed in pain as the phone exploded into shattered class, the bits of the screen impeding into the skin. I stood up, glad to have the momentary control with the carnal feeling. I started to run back to the substation, knowing Derek was going to need me. Knowing that the pack needed me. Knowing that _Isaac _needed me.

Suddenly, I was pinned to a wall, Isaac fully wolfed out, his yellowed eyes glaring into the human blue of mine. I gasped as his forearm crushed against my throat. I choked, trying to push him off of me, using the way my wolf was reacting to his touch to do so. I held him by his shoulders, my eyes glowing, but my wolf and I working as one to save him from himself.

"You can do this, Isaac! Don't become a killer like I did. Don't fall into the path your Father did. Think of something that grounds you…" I winced as he started to scratch at my stomach and sides, not willing to stop, "Think of him, think of your family, your brother your mom. Think of all the good times when things weren't so bad." I pleaded with him, my wolf whining from within, finally noticing what it was that held me together. "Because Isaac if I can't help you help yourself, then I'll lose what control I have… You're my rock, my shelter, my anchor to ground me when the storms are raging around us. You have been from the start of all this, so please… please find yours… Find your anchor."

He looked at me, tears streaming down my face as I tried to help him understand what he needed to do. Slowly, he stopped struggling, and his features, though they remained wolfed out while I only had my claws and eyes showing, calmed so I could tell he had control. I panted, feeling my stomach slowly become whole again. "Come on, our pack needs us." I said, holding my hand out to his as we ran back to the station.

When we got there, we saw through the glass that Derek was sandwiched between the two, Boyd at his throat and Erica clawing at his back. He knocked them both back and moved to chain Erica back up. As he did so Boyd started to run down the car to escape. I ran forward about to stop him, but was pushed back by Isaac as Boyd went to take a swing at me. Isaac shoved him down into a seat, Derek moved to stop them, but I held a hand up to stop him, running and twisting him around so that Erica went to slash at me instead. I hissed as she slashed down my chest, grabbing her head and slamming my own into hers. I fixed her chains and turned to see Derek looking between us. Isaac and I looked up from our respective detainees, nodding him to show we had control. Once we were finished, we sat down, myself taking the same area I did before, Derek tying me up first with the waist belt and having the chains wrap around both poles and up on the luggage rack.

He turned to Isaac, who sat down in his bench with his wrist out calmly looking ahead, "I think you'll both be okay now." We didn't say anything, just looked ahead, myself facing them and Isaac the front of the car. "Looks like you found an anchor," He said to Isaac, who nodded.

Isaac swallowed slowly, "My father." I smiled, glad that something I said clicked while Derek looked at his work confused.

"Your father locked you in a freezer in the basement to punish you."

Isaac smiled slightly, "He didn't used to." Derek nodded, finishing the chains and Isaac lowered his hand into his wrist, the Alpha leaving the car with a sigh. I looked to Isaac, a small smile on my face still, he turned to me his wolf brow raised slightly, "What are you smiling for?"

My smile widened as I let a yawn escape my lips, "You listened." I put my lip, the smile fading, "But did you uh… did you hear the whole thing?"

He nodded, looking to me with a kind expression that I really hoped would start to replace the cock smirk I hated on him, "I heard it all Steph… and thank you for being there to help me find myself." I nodded, looking at him curiously.

"I sense a but coming…"

"Well, more of a why… it's just… Why is it you care so much?"

I sighed, leaning my head against the car wall, "You're my boyfriend is it that hard to believe that I care for you? That I want to help you as a friend, as a girlfriend, as a pack mate or even just as another… sort of human being?" I swallowed, "To be honest, I do it because if I knew that there was someone who even remotely cared about me the way I care about you, then maybe I wouldn't be so damn damaged." I leaned forward, resting my arms on my knees, wishing I could hug him, "So yea I care about you dummy… I might even grow to love you, who knows just yet."

"You what?" He looked at me in surprise as my own eyes widened in the realization of what I said.

I smiled,"I said I care you, Isaac Lahey a lot. And I won't let you stay broken like I was… I'm going to fix you, even if it means having to fix things about myself."

* * *

_There y'all go! Anchors, full moons, deep convos and fluff Oh MY!_

_Lots of stuff going on this chapter! I hope you liked! We're getting close to the end of season 2! Which means either a more chapters for season 3 or maybe even a sequel! Either way it's gonna involve a friend of mine's oc so just you wait! Anyway, follow fave, comment, let me know if you liked it, or didn't like it. I am open to CONSTRUCTIVE criticism. But please try to be nice, and not just barrage me with what you have issues with. _

_Anyway, love and hugs to all of you!_

_~Gwen_


	14. Fear's Angered Master

_Hey all! So sorry for this break, I know I've cranked out multiple chapters pretty fast lately, but I got slammed with work for finals. I want to thank all of my new followers and faves for doing so I'm glad you like the story__!__ And I have a couple of notes about the story to make._

_1. I know that Steph and Isaac's relationship took quite a jump between the last two chapters, but don't worry, I do have a way of explaining that in this one! And _

_2. I have found an official cannon timeline to follow! Which made me realized that holy cow is is stretched out, but also that I have made some things wrong. I hope you guys can bear with me as I try to fix it to follow the canon from now on. _

_Now for my Reviews:_

_**RockaRosalie**__**: Well, I kinda addressed this in my A/N, but I do plan on explaining the rush of their relationship, I got so excited that they were together, I got carried away, but I also had a purpose in mind for that. Thanks for the creative crit! **_

_**And Guest: Yes I have seen Dylan without a shirt, but they don't really show off Stiles' as being a particularly muscular guy until around season 3 with the whole bathtub thing, so that's where that assumption is. Also, you don't know when the last time Steph has actually seen him shirtless, so it left a bit of time for ambiguity. I was just going for a joke, sorry to offend! Thanks for reviewing though! **_

_And I think that about covers it! Thanks for reviewing, following, and __faving__ guys, I appreciate it! _

_Oh! And a Happy Birthday to the Lovely Daniel Sharman who turns 28 today! _

_**Disclaimer: I don't own Teen wolf, nor do I ever Plan to, but I do own Steph and this little change of perspective on the show.**_

* * *

_Chapter 14: Fear's Angered Master_

Although I had gained control of my wolf's physical form, I couldn't keep the thoughts that it's actions tonight sent through me at bay. My confusion about the confession I had made to Isaac kept me reeling long after he had fallen asleep, a peaceful expression on his face. I felt my bottom lip, curl out of my teeth with a small smile as his wolf's features melted away the further into his restful state he sank. His face was back to it's smooth and angular grace, turned upward as his head was bend back over the top of the bench he was chained to, his pale blue eyes shuttered by the pale lids and dark lashes. Despite the obviously changed position, this was the sight was I had gotten accustomed to in the week long whirlwind that was my relationship with him. Even as I think of this, I am snapped into a reality of how it was all too sudden: Too much, too soon, and too fast.

I don't know how I hadn't realized it until now, I suppose it was just the naivety that came with not having been one to date or have relationships before now. Everything had been so easy to this point. I touched my neck, already feeling the mark that only this morning Erica had pointed out to me fading. Barely visible now on Isaac's neck, I knew they would be gone in the morning, but that the feeling that placed them there would only intensify. After all, it was in the notes I'd made from all of my sources. It was the reasoning behind everything that has been going on with the two of us. It was something that from a logical standpoint I knew, but was scared of emotionally. I ran my hand through my hair, chains rattling slightly as I recited my findings in my head.

"_Like the wolf, werewolves will mate, sealing it with the marking of their partner. However, there is first a courtship in which the potential mates will spend a lot of time together, being overly affectionate, and even sleeping together. The mark, when it is time, is made at the juncture of the throat and neck, and usually happens after or during Sex, the animalistic side of the werewolf being kicked into gear during this time. Though it may not always involve sex, it more commonly than not does, making the act of marking that much more prominent, or meaningful, both sides of the being having participated so to speak."_

I sighed lightly as a spark of fear set in with the knowledge that those words provided. Then came the questions. If I knew, did Isaac? If so where do we go from there? We have only truly known each other for about a month, all of that time as werewolves. After having only two full moons under our belts, how can we be expected to handle this?Derek hasn't even been able to teach us proper control or even how to handle other humans properly, how would he be able to teach us what to do with this? The more I thought, the more I fretted, and soon my wolf's thoughts were able to take shape, a small smile on her face.

_At least know you can say that the 'pull' you felt towards him wasn't just in your head. You know what it is and you can finally relax, knowing it's completely natural. I mean, after all "Once a werewolf has found their mate, they can __feel__ it. No longer feeling alone, they have to know everything about the other person and spend all their time with them. If the human and wolf side both are drawn to the person, then it is a sure sign that the werewolf in question is their mate." You know it to be true. I mean, that explains all of it, right? The ways he affects us? The ways that he grounds us when you are fretting and shutting me out? Face it girly, you found yourself a mate. And within your first two moons as well! Be proud, I'm sure it takes most a hell of a lot longer. _

I shook my head, not wanting it to be true, but knowing I needed to talk to Derek and Isaac. Let them look at it objectively, and not from the biased standpoint I stood at. I didn't want to scare Isaac off with this, not after the hell we've been through to even admit how we felt for each other. It was all too risky, too much emotion and not enough thought.

_That's the point of it all, you silly girl_ my wolf snorted, making me question my sanity for having these two separate but unified minds that rested together in my head. _You're supposed to __feel__ over any __thought__ with your mate. Your thought process here is the opposite of what you need to do. Just calm down and enjoy this moment. __Stop thinking and start feeling__, you became werewolf to get away from your twisted and broken thoughts and memories, so stop fighting it and accept it. _

My human mind shook her head not wanting to listen. Meanwhile my other half-whether it's more accurate to call it my wolf or my heart at this point, I don't even know-continued:

_Besides, we __both__ know that you're being like this because you're __terrified __of letting any man into your heart again. Because you think they'll all leave you like your dad. That's why you don't trust Derek, or Scott. Stiles and Isaac are too caring to leave you so you cling to that, but when it gets too serious, __you're __the one running away. _

I sigh, trying to think of what to say about my self-diagnosis, jumping as I was graced with the distraction of Derek bursting into the car kneeling down in front of me and undoing my chains.

"Derek, what are you doing? Why do you look so freaked?"

"Have you heard from Scott or Stiles?" His voice was concerned, but he didn't look up, instead focusing on the chains. "Have they tried to contact you in any way?"

"Well, considering I spent a better part of an hour picking out shards of my phone from when I smashed it, I'm going to have to say no, and I don't really know, respectively." I winced, rubbing at the slightly chaffing of my wrists and at my tingling legs as I stood. "Why?"

"We need to go to the sheriff's station and help them." Derek handed me a shirt, making me realize he'd changed out of his wife-beater and into a black v-neck. "Put this on, and let's go."

Complying, I followed him to his camauro, turning to him as he sped away, his hands tight on the steering wheel, "Is there any particular reason I'm coming with you?"

"We don't know what's there, and you have control enough for me to have back-up." Derek looked away from the road and out his window for a second, his jaw clenched, "And apparently, I need to start trusting people more."

"And you thought that starting with _me_ was your best plan?" I raised an eyebrow looking at his tense form.

"Would you rather be chained up at the substation?"

I clamped my mouth shut, "Fair enough."

* * *

We made no plan, just charged in, making me a very concerned wolf. I really swear that part of Derek had a blind spot when it came to my two very naive and danger prone friends, making his whole alpha image hard to keep up. So when, thanks to his stupid lack of a scent or any way for us to sense him, Jackson showed up, and took him down, I wasn't really surprised. I wasn't expecting it, but it didn't surprise me. What did surprise me was when the half shifted jock didn't give me the same fate, deciding to just pull my along by my throat instead. We stood at the door, it opening as Scott let out a relieved 'oh thank God'. Gasping lightly I watched as while the other two were held at gunpoint Derek fell forward, his numb legs twisting and causing him to land on his back. Derek's landing wasn't the problem though…the problem was that of all the people to control the Kanima, Stiles and I were right.

"Matt?" I said, as Jackson pulled me into view, the guys looking at me in shock.

Derek spoke up, his voice kind of critical, "This is the one controlling him? This kid?"

Matt shook his head waving the gun towards Derek, "Well, Derek, not everyone's lucky enough to be a big, bad werewolf. Oh, yeah, that's - that's right. I've learned a few things lately. Werewolves, hunters, kanimas." He looked at me with a wry smile, "It's like a frickin' Halloween party every full moon. Except for you, Stiles. What do you turn into?" He looked at the other teen who just decided to use his 'only defense," true to form.

"Abominable snowman. But uh, it's more of, like, a wintertime thing, you know, seasonal." Matt looked to Jackson who used his claws to cut the back of Stiles' neck, making Scott lurch forward.

"Hey!" He stopped as Jackson dropped me in favor of keeping Scott away from Stiles, who was holding his neck and looked at Matt.

"You bitch." He whispered before dropping on top of Derek who grunted from the force.

"Get him off of me."

Matt laughed, standing over them, "Oh, I don't know, Derek. I think you two make a pretty good pair. It must kinda suck, though, to have all that power taken away from you with just a little cut to the back of the neck. I bet you're not used to feeling this helpless." He looked at me, a strange look in his eyes as Derek spoke up.

"Still got some teeth. Why don't you get down here a little closer, huh? We'll see how helpless I am."

Stiles mumbled against Derek's chest, making me bite my tongue to hold in my laughter, "Yeah, bitch."

Matt just turned to me as I stood, ignoring the comments "Now you Stephanie... you I have plans for, so let's-" He turned as the sound of are coming filled the parking lot along with headlights. "Is that her?" he turned to Scott, pointing the gun, "Do what I tell you to and I won't hurt her. I won't even let Jackson near her."

I gasped as Matt grabbed my wrist, still shouting along with Stiles, "Scott, don't trust him!"

Matt looked at Scott's uncertainty, holding a foot to Stiles' throat, and the gun to my head, "This work better for ya?" He applied pressure with his shoe, making Stiles choke and his arm now wrapped tight around my waist.

Scott held his hand out, "Okay, just stop! Stop!"

Matt didn't listen, just staring at him, "Then do what I tell you to."

Scott looked down at Stiles then back at me, a worried expression on his face, "Okay. All right. Stop!"

Matt smirked satisfied, making me want to throw him into something, but right now, he needed to think I was normal. _maybe I would lull him into a sense of security and take him down._ He turned to Jackson, pointing to the two paralyzed victims, "You, take 'em in there. You - with me." He gestured to Scott before whispering in my ear, "You, You are going to be my leverage."

"Go ahead, it's not going to make a difference." I spat, Scott looking at me sympathetically before he went ahead of us to get to Ms. McCall.

"Mom?"

Melissa jumped, not hearing him come in, "You scared me, where is every -" She froze as she saw Matt pointing the gun and then me in his grip.

Scott looked to her, trying to keep her calm, "Mom, just do what he says. He promised he wouldn't hurt you."

Matt nodded, "He's right." He turned shooting Scott in the stomach and then me in my side as well.

I cried out in pain, falling down as he let me go, the sheriff shouting from somewhere in the station, "Scott! Stiles! What happened?"

Matt leaned over us as I pulled myself to Scott, thankful that the shirt that Derek gave me was baggy and dark, "But I didn't say I wouldn't hurt you."

Melissa looked at us, crying in fear and moving to the gate, "Kids, it's going to be okay, Wait, baby -"

Matt moved forward, pointing the gun at her and making her put her hands up, "Back, back!"

Scott held to his stomach, trying to hide the fact that he's healing, "Mom, mom, stop, mom!"

"Mrs. McCall, just do what he says!" I gasped, bunching up part of the shirt to apply pressure to my wound in hopes that it would heal faster, but also so Matt didn't realize I was a wolf too.

"I said get back!" Matt growled, as Melissa looked to Scott, sobbing out his name.

Scott groaned, and we helped each other up, not even pretending with the pain that caused, "Mom, do it. Please, mom."

We walked down the hall as Matt dragged Melissa to a cell, Scott whispering to me, "Does he know about you?"

I grunted, looking at my bloody hands, "I don't think so... but let's not tell him either... it might come in handy. I'm already mostly healed."

He nodded as we got into the holding room where I saw the Sheriff handcuffed to the bar that was on the wall next to the cell he threw Melissa into.

"Matt? Matt, listen to me -"

"Matt you need to let us go, this isn't going to-" I started, hoping the confusion would distract him enough for me to attack. Instead, he started to swing the gun around, and pounding at his head like a child.

"Shut - shut - shut up! Everybody shut the hell up!" He turned to Scott, pointing the gun at Melissa, "Now, get up, or I shoot her next!"

Melissa moved up to the bars pleading with Matt, "Please, he needs to see a doctor and so does she."

Matt turned to look at us, "You think so? I mean Steph, yeah probably, but really?"

The Sheriff took on an angry dad voice, trying to get his attention away from us, "Hey, hey, you listen to me!"

Scott and I got Matt's attention, Scott saying, "It's all right. I'm okay."

"Really, Ms. McCall, we're fine." I grit my teeth as a wave of pain hit when Matt nudged at my side curiously.

Melissa looked at us both with sad turn of her head, "No, honey, you're not okay. You guys aren't find."

Scott tried to convey a comforting to his mother, not wanting her to get hurt, "It doesn't hurt, mom."

"Cause that's the adrenaline, okay? Please, let me - let me just take a look at him, okay? I mean, I can help stop the bleeding."

Matt looked to me with a laugh, as he realized something, "They have no idea, do they? And Steph..."

"Please. Let me just take a quick look. I -" Matt turned at Melissa's pleads, shouting.

"Shut - shut - shut - shut up! Lady, if you keep talking, I'm gonna put the next bullet through his head."

As Melissa backed away with a few whispered, 'okays' Matt turned to us, "Back to the front, McCall. McGrath, why don't you stay here."

I looked to Scott, my eyes widening, "What?"

Matt pointed the gun to my head, "I _said_ STAY HERE!"

I shrank back, my side jarring as I slammed against the wall, "Okay... Okay, I'll stay, just-just don't hurt anyone okay?"

Matt scoffed and they ran off. I looked over at the two adults, trying to figure out my way out of here if I was going to act like my wound was still slowly killing me. Sliding next to Stiles' dad, I closed my eyes, hearing them both yelling for me to stay awake. Instead, I let all the night's struggle from the moon and healing mu wound take over, falling into a small blackout.

* * *

I jolted suddenly as the sheriff started to shake me, with his boot. I looked over at Melissa who was watching me worriedly, making me realize that they were both looking at my stomach where my shirt had ridden up, the copious amounts of blood hiding the fact that I was healed. But I realized that Scott's mom had been the one who treated me for a few of my 'kitchen accidents' and that she was seeing the complete removal of my scars. Jumping back from the sheriff, I shrank away from him, not wanting any contact. They both looked at me strangely as Derek's voice rang through the room. The lights flickering as if on a generator and smoke entering the rooms.

"Take him! Go!" I pushed up, moving to where I knew Derek would be laying alone, ignoring the calls of the adults behind me, having pushed the sheriff way so that he couldn't trip me up.

As soon as I reached him a pulled him behind the counter, feeling a panic set in as I realized that we were going to be surrounded by hunters. I looked at Derek who was only barely allowing him to start moving again. I winced, standing up.

"I'm really sorry about this," I mumbled, and I delivered a swift kick to the ribs, making him howl in pain, but to stand up now that the healing process had been triggered. Wolfing out, he looked at me his red eyes, bright.

"Thank you. Now we help Scott."

"We don't even know where they are!" I said, allowing myself to shift as well, my eyes reddening with the change.

"Then just go after any hunter you see!"

I nodded, running the opposite direction as him, coming across a paralyzed Allison and a crouched Chris in the evidence locker. Allison's eyes widened as she saw me and Chris turned, seeing me. I barely avoided each of his shots, darting between the carts, and knocking anyone in my path. I didn't want to hurt anyway, but my wolf was in desperate need to get away from the hunters, so my 'knocking' may have involved a lot of claws or excessive force. It was all so disorienting and I didn't even realize where I was until I heard Jackson and Derek's snarls and growls, Stiles on the floor. Scott had just arrived as Derek left, and I picked up Stiles, running out and putting him in the backseat of his Jeep. He protested, his arms jerking slightly.

"NO! Scott... we can't just leave-"

"Shut _up_ you idiot!" I snapped, my head through the rolled down window. "I was just getting your ass out of here. Don't worry, I'm not planning on leaving Scott." I looked to the building. "or Derek."

And with that I ran back in only to have Gerard shoot some sort of flare next to me, making my vision spotty and hazed. I blinked trying to hold my hand up in a defensive stance, but the old man got the drop on me, kicking my legs out from under me. My eyes widened as the gun was pointed to my head, all sorts of thoughts and regrets flooding in my head. Suddenly Scott bumped into him, a small container falling. I saw some pills fall out of Scott's hand, and I switched out the ones that were already in the container, feeling like that was their purpose. Scott looked to me then Gerard.

"What are you doing here? It wasn't supposed to happen like this." _Happen like what?_

Gerard's voice was on edge, but he still spoke to Scott as an ally and not an enemy, "Trust me, I'm aware of that." I looked up at Scott, a cold realization shocking through me. _Scott was working with Gerard? _While the two were distracted, I scrambled down the hallway, only for Derek to pull me behind the corner he was hiding at.

Scott's voice turned desperate, making me wonder what exactly the damn hunter did to make Scott help him and if that's why Allison was so different from the last time I saw her. "I've done everything that you've asked of me. I'm part of Derek's pack, I've given you all the information that you wanted, I told you Matt was controlling Jackson -"

I clenched my jaw, realizing that Matt had gotten away without me realizing what it was that made him so consumed by anger and vengeance. Gerard spoke up again, leaving me to just grip Derek's arm, making him look at me with an equal fear and understanding.

"Then leave him to us. Help your friends. Leave Matt and Jackson to me. Deal with your mother. Go!"

Scott picked up the pill container, "You dropped this." Then the next thing we saw was him running past us, leaving us to wonder what the hell our newest pack member was getting us into.

* * *

_Okay guys that's all for now! Please let me know any questions, comments, concerns, or compliments by giving me a review! I hope you guys are enjoying it, and any issues that you have been addressed/ can be fixed, just let me know!_

Side note, I have been watching

_hugs and kisses_

_~Gwen _


	15. The Smaller Things

12

_Hey all! I hope you are enjoying the story so far! I can't believe that we are almost done with Season 2! And then I'll be doing a sequel story for Season 3 (both a and b). The title is still in the works, but it will also be the incorporation of my friend Raven's OC Piper (She'll be an OC paired with Stiles). Anywho! Time for the next chapter! _

_**Disclaimer: I don't own any of Jeff Davis' works, and he doesn't own Stephanie or her story.**_

* * *

_Chapter 15: The Smaller Things._

Derek and I rode back to the station in silence, not sure what we were going to say to the rest of the group. I went to my car and laid on my back, looking up at the ceiling. So much was going on. Why would Matt go after the swim team? Why was Scott working with Gerard? Is there any hope in us saving Jackson at this point? Nothing made any sense to me. I furrowed my brow when I heard Isaac's phone going off on my desk where he had apparently left it before we got chained up. Picking it up, I realized it was Stiles, not sure how he even _had_ Isaac's number I answered.

"Stiles, how did you get Isaac's number?"

"I got it from Derek. Maybe if you had answered your phone to begin with, I wouldn't have to resort to the boyfriend's."

I closed my eyes tightly, pinching the bridge of my nose, "I'm so sorry, Stiles I wasn't ignoring your calls. I kinda smashed my phone during the part of the night where I didn't have control over myself. I'm going to get a new one in a few days. Uhm…" I paused, moving back to my bed, "More important than that, how are you doing? I take it the venom is all out of your system?"

"Uh yeah...I was calling to ask you that...since you were nervous about the moon earlier tonight, but then I saw you in control and everything later."

"Well, my side still hurts like a bitch from when I was shot, and then thrown to the floor, but other than that, I'm good." I nodded, poking at the tender spot to make sure it was healing properly. " I think I might have to have Derek pull the pullet out or something."

"Right...Hey," His voice went from conversational to sort of conspiratorial, "Did Scott tell you about Matt?"

I felt myself bristle at Scott's name, but I shook it off, "Uhm, no. He hasn't talked to me since he pulled Gerard off of me and Derek grabbed me…" _More like when he pulled Gerard away and twisted the knife that was in our backs without us realizing it. _I shook my head, part of me wanting to trust him, given that the pills I had switched with Gerards felt off, but in a familiar way that was bothering me.

"Oh, well uhm… apparently, Matt told him everything."

"Everything?" I sat up, moving to my desk to pull up the copies of the Kanima research I had.

"Like why he was controlling Jackson, and the motive for the swim team murders."

"Wait...was it _only_ the swim team?"

"Well aside from you, yeah."

I thought back to my memories of my sister and Matt as well as the dream I had so long ago, nearly forgotten in my memory, "It only attacked me because Matt must have thought I was Mel...I why else would I have been attacked while Jackson was controlled by him? I mean, yes, I'm a murderer and everythi-"

"Steph, I know I gave you a hard time with that at first, but you didn't know what you were doing...just like Jackson doesn't right now."

I bit my lip, not sure if I should tell Stiles about how I was close to knowingly killing a few hunters tonight in my mad dash through the station. We sat in a slightly uncomfortable silence for a little while, and I'm not sure if it was out of lack of anything to say or if we just needed to enjoy the knowledge that someone was there when we needed them. Sighing, I opened my mouth to say something when Stiles spoke up.

"Hey Steph, did you still need that research? The one on the marking? I still haven't gotten it yet with everything, but I can- "

I laughed, thinking to what had happened earlier that day. And how of all possible topics for discussion, he chose that one.

"No. No I'm good Stiles, I got all the information I needed."

* * *

They found Matt's body the next day, and the funeral was to be held today, a mere three days afterwards. As I walked into the cemetery I couldn't help but feel sorry for the poor guy, as well as drained from my conversation with my sister. It was a Sunday, so I took advangage of the knowledge that my 'family', if I could even still call them that, would be at home. I had Stiles find out where they were and got him to lend me his jeep so I could go talk to them. And by talk to 'them' I mean talk to Mel. Well, okay, I left a note on the door and hoped that Melanie would meet with me. I had waited for an extra hour at the small cafe we were to see each other at, hoping against hope she would talk to me. Just as I was about to leave when she showed up, making a very shy and uncharacteristic entrance. As she approached me, I remember being shocked and happy to see that she looked really good: the skeletal thinness replaced with softer, healthier features, and her skin bronzed with a healthy glow.

_I smiled as she sat across from me, "You look great, Mel...I'm glad that the move did you well." _

"_Just cut to the chase, Brat. I'm not here to change anything, I just want to know what happened to Matt." _

"_Right...sorry." I sighed, leaning forward, my forearms resting on the table, "Uhm...Matt...Well he-" I paused, not sure what to say. _

"_Well?" I looked up at Mel as she taped, her long, perfectly manicured nails along the table with impatient clacking. _

"_He's dead, Mel...They found his body in the river just outside of the preserve." Her eyes widened, but I continued, "The strange part is...well he was killing off members of the 2006 swim team." I paused as her hand flew to her mouth and her eyes got glassy, "And me…" _

_Tears fell down her face as realization dawn on her face, "It...it wasn't you he was after...it was me." _

_I looked to her, unsure of what to do aside from slide her the chamomile tea I had gotten her. "Why would Matt be after you, Mel?"_

"_It was- it was years ago, we are like eight? And he...he took us to Isaac's place….they uhm...they were going to trade comic books or something stupid like that...I only really went with him in the off chance I got to see Camden, who as you know, was the replacement I had for Josh after-" She shook her head, "Anyway I had to go to the bathroom, but there was some girl puking there, so I went to go back to the guys, but I heard music." She paused, and I handed her some napkins as she tried to compose herself. _

" _I was too young to realize they had been drinking or that Lahey was the one who was stupid enough to let them. When I came out, they were all hanging by the pool, partying, having a good time. They hadn't really noticed me, much like I hadn't noticed Matt, until after Sean had thrown Jessica in, Camden had turned and seen us while Bennet jumped in...Then he...he picked me up and tossed me in. Of course I thought it was perfectly fine, I'd been swimming since we were four. So without thinking I just called out for Camden to throw Matt in as well." She sobbed, pulling her hand away from her mouth, "And he did." _

_We sat there for a little bit as I absorbed what she was saying, "I mean, I was a witness to an attempted murder, or something like that and I didn't even realize it until Lahey had pulled Matt out, yelling at him to not tell anyone. He then pulled me out of the pool and said the same thing, saying we should have stayed upstairs. I didn't know what was going on! I didn't know that Matt couldn't swim. Hell, I didn't even know what I was a party to until Lahey yelled at me, and kicked us out, Matt running away from me before I could see if he was okay. It was like Joshua all over again!" She started to sob again, and I just sat there awkwardly, not sure if I should do or say anything. She picked up again, her voice more composed, "That's when Isaac started to act like you did at school. Hiding bruises, not nearly as bad as after his mom or even when Camden died, but he was getting abused, or was at least being punished for his friend." _

_I gasped, thinking back to the look on Isaac's face when I told him about Matt. __That's why he was __acting so strangely...he still feels guilty about that…_

"_Besides, if it wasn't for you, I wouldn't in this situation." She said, her old snark and venom back in her voice, making me look back at her in confusion, "Oh don't even try to be innocent! I know you looked through my blog to try and see if there was any connection between me and Matt, which means that you knew before hand, and decided to wait until he was dead to tell me. Hell, if it wasn't for you wanting to hang out with them, I wouldn't have even become friends with Matt and Isaac, not that it lasted long after that." She stood up, "So take pleasure in this piece of my misery, but just know that I have way more shit on you, and if you ever try to talk to me or mom again, I __will__ end you." _

_She spun around, making me watch the door in shock, all of her guilt locked away in the make-up smeared napkins on the table. _

I focused back on what I was doing. I was entering the funeral of my sister and boyfriend's childhood friend, feeling that I at least owed them and Matt that much. I sat down after offering my condolences to the family, adjusting my simple black dress nervously, feeling lost within the small group. I had shared a small, sad smile with Danny, who had come with a couple other people from school that knew him, but it was mostly Matt's family within the small group of about fifteen. The two women next to me, both of Matt's grandmothers, didn't speak to me and I was perfectly okay with that. I wasn't planning on speaking to anyone after what I had already said to his parents. I wasn't here for me, I wasn't even here for the Matt that was sitting in the coffin. No. I was here for the people I held dear and the people I never got to know.

I was here for my sister, who was still holding onto the guilt from her eight year old naivety.

I was here for Isaac, who had wanted to come, but was in hiding as well as keeping tabs on Scott.

I was here for the family who didn't realize the hell that their son went through and what it did to him.

And I was here for the eight year old Matt who nearly drowned for visiting a friend on the wrong night.

The only part that made it all bearable was the note I had found when I went to find some tissues to wipe away the tears I felt I didn't deserve to shed. After all that had happened, I didn't _know_ Matt, and I didn't _know_ Scott, which made me question if I actually _knew_ anyone or if they all just wore a mask like the one I had worn for be past nine years of my life. As I result I pulled away from Isaac, only slightly, not enough for him to really be concerned about or notice it. The only thing he didn't like was that I'd slip out of his bed, which I'd insisted we started using for this purpose, to sneak away into my own once he'd fallen asleep. But even despite my distance, he has been there for me in the smallest of ways. And this small folded piece of paper made me regret what I was doing even more. I opened it, not realizing that the women next to me were whispering to each other about me and how I didn't seem to be here, and asking each other why I bothered. I smiled to myself as I looked at his neat, and small script:

_Hey puffin,_

_I know how hard today is for you, and I wish I was sitting next to you right now, but don't worry. If I know anything about you, it's that you can make it through this. You'll just brush your shoulders of it and return to the fray as if nothing happened. You're strong like that, Steph.. Just know if you do need to talk about it when you get back, I'll be here with open ears and a pint of cookie dough ice cream. _

_I'll see you soon,_

_Isaac L._

I found myself laughing despite myself, quickly finding my tissues and covering it with the following sobs. The service ended shortly after, and I ran out and to Stiles' jeep. Rushing to his house before taking off to the substation, I finally made up my mind. I ran right up to Isaac's car, knowing he would be back by now. I found him sitting on a stool he'd stolen from school, his heels propped up on his desk, as he stretched across the room, a book in his hands. I paused for a second, letting the image of him being so relaxed, and so unaware of my presence sink in before I snuck up to him. Smiling to myself, I kissed him, pulling his face up before he could really register that I was back. He lowered his legs to rest on either side of me and moved his hands on my waist, as I pulled away, playing with the hairs at the end of his neck. The note was clenched in my other hand, which rested on his chest.

He looked at me with a curious smile, "What was that for?"

I pulled my hand up, revealing the note, ""For always knowing what to say, even when you're not there. Despite 'not being good at writing'. Despite my distance lately. And despite me not realizing I needed you and you were there anyway." I kissed him again, this time giving him the chance to respond. After a few seconds, I pulled away, my face scrunched up in confusion. "But...I do have one question."

"Hmm, what's that?" He tilted his head to the side, wondering what was so important a question that I had to interrupt our much prefered activity.

"What the _heck_ is a puffin and why is it the nickname you finally decided on?"

* * *

I was the only one to go back to school the next day, spring break having been over. As to why, I don't know, since Allison had clearly seen me and knows about me. However, Derek's orders were final, and I was at least able to make sure Stiles was okay. Granted it didn't really dawn on me until Friday morning just how much it was all affecting the human until I miss him in Chemistry due to an appointment with Ms. Morell, my french teacher as well as the school guidance counselor.

I had gone through class with no real incident until I asked for Stiles' make-up work, which was really a lot more fun that it should have been. The detention had been totally worth it, as well as the extra ten minutes I got to myself when Harris had me out of class. Though now I found myself leaning against my friend's locker before the bell with nothing to do but think about the whirlwind my life has been in the past two months. I had become a werewolf, left my family, lost and regained my best friend, got even more friends, fought a creature that was killing me because of a teenager who thought I was my sister wanted revenge, Gotten a boyfriend, and am being chased by hunters because of what I am, and I because I killed someone when I didn't have control over myself. It was heard to think that so little time had passed and that all of that happened, but it did. The stranger part is, I was getting used to this fast paced lifestyle.

I smiled to myself as Stiles came to his locker, his hand tight on his lacrosse stick as he opened his locker. _It's because of friends like Stiles that you were able to pull through this mess. _I held out his papers to him, a smirk on my face.

"You have no idea what I had to go through to get this from Harris. I mean, I literally had to call him out on being an unsympathetic dick for not giving make-up work to someone whose friend was out because he was speaking to the guidance counselor in order to deal with the loss of a teammate." I tilted my head back and forth, "I mean it got me a detention, but it was totally worth it to see his reaction to the class having to hear me say it. Hell, I even got out of class-" I paused, looking at the tight grip he had on his lacrosse stick and how he was nearly shaking, his eyes sunken from lack of sleep. "Hey, are you okay?"

He looked at me and sighed, taking the papers from my hand, "Yeah, aside from the not sleeping, the jumpiness, the constant, overwhelming, crushing fear that something terrible's about to happen. Ms. Morrell said It's something called hyper - vigilance...this uh...this persistent feeling of being under threat." He looked down, dropping his hand that he'd been gesturing with. After a minute he looked up at him, his head slanted, "But it's not just a feeling, though. It's - it's like it's a panic attack. You know, like I can't even breathe."

"Oh Stiles…"

Without even thinking about it, I wrapped my arms around Stiles' neck, trying to find a way to make him see that I was there for him in the best way I could. He stood there, not really sure how to react before he slowly wrapped his arms around my waist. Part of me was happy that I had made such a milestone in our relationship, but I was also became fully aware of the fact that the last time I allowed such contact with someone, they became my boyfriend. Pulling away, I shook the thought away. _Come one, this is Stiles...you don't have to worry about that with him...he's my replacement Joshua...hes-_I looked up at him with a small sense of shock. _He's my Camden. _

Stiles looked at me, putting his lacrosse stick in the loop of his backpack and closing his locker as the bell rang. "Anyway, uh...thanks for these...I'll talk to Harris about me taking the detention. I'm pretty sure it would be much better for me than if Isaac or Derek found out I was the reason you had Detention….namely Isaac…"

"I shook my head, "Don't even think about it...besides it's just for today, and I'm more worried about what you're doing to yourself, especially with all of this Hyper-vigilance." I grabbed his chin, moving it from side to side, inspecting his pale skin and dark circles. "When was the last time you actually got any sleep?"

"Oh you know...the same night I had to have you carry me out like some damsel in distress." Stiles shrugged me off, shoving his hands in his pockets as we went to his Jeep before I went to detention. "Thinking about just how useless I was there."

I turned stopping him at the door to the school, "Stiles...You can't beat yourself up about that."

Stiles looked at me, this sort of downhearted look on his face, "Steph, the other night seeing my dad get hit over the head by Matt...and then you passing out after everything. While I'm just lying there and I can't even move, it just-" He looked down, "I want to help all of you guys, you know? But I just….I'm only human and I can't things that you can do. We're losing and I'm…" He looked back up at me, "I'm not a hero, Steph...you guys are."

I laughed, making him look at me strangely, "Stiles...don't you get it? _That's_ how you help. Yes, you are human, but that's what makes you a hero. At least it's what makes you my hero."

"_I _am _your_ hero?" Stiles looked at me strangely, "Steph, you have super human strength, and claws...and you have all sorts of-"

"Problems with it all the time! The only benefits I've truly gotten from this is the relationships I have and the fact that I'm away from my abusive family!" I said, slapping my leg, "I mean I get my ass kicked about as much Derek does!"

"But at least you have some sort of edge against all that you fight. If I fought the kanima, it would kill me."

I sighed, looking to Stiles, unhappy that my joke went amiss, "I just wish...I just you could see what we all see in you…" He looked up at me in shock, but I had already started walking towards the school. "I have to go...I'll see you at the game tomorrow, Okay?"

I could vaguely hear him say, "Yea...I'll see you steph." As I made my way to the Harris's room for the most passive hour and a half I've ever shared with the man.

* * *

It was the night of the game, Boyd and Erica were leaving, Isaac has been avoiding me as he tried to figure out what Derek wants as well as if he should leave, and I couldn't stand the idea that our small pack was falling apart now that we'd finally become a unit. Unable to stay in the station, I decided to go see what Deaton and Scott had to say about it, as well as beg for my job back, since I sure as hell wasn't leaving. _I have people to protect now...people who __actually care__ about me…._

They welcomed me in with smiles, making me feel more welcome than I have felt anywhere outside of when I was with Stiles or Isaac. They set me to work immediately, working on one of the sicker puppies. As Scott got the medicine together I took the little guy out of his Kennel, bringing him to the table. As we got him situated, Deaton kept trying to read my expression, since I'd had it guarded the whole time I was there, measuring the puppy's dosage out in the syringe. Scott was fixing the bottles as the table next to me while I pet the little guy when we heard the bell at the front door sound. Deaton and I turned to Scott, who looked at me. I shrugged and Deaton spoke up.

"Would you mind seeing who that is? Both of you?" We nodded, myself giving the puppy a final pet before all the other dogs started to park and raise a fuss in the kennels. Looking to each other, all three of us went to the front desk. Scott stopped, at the corner, but Deaton and I moved forward only to see Isaac standing at the door, his hands in his pockets. He looked like he had been running, his hair was slightly damp with sweat. Smiling Deaton moved to the gate opening it, I stood next to him with a small smile on my own face as well.

"It's okay, Isaac. We're open."

Isaac came in, giving my hand a short squeeze before walking towards Scott and into the room.

I tried not to be too offended by the limited greeting, and instead stood with Scott on the side of the table, the two of us calming our little patient by petting him softly. Isaac leaned on the tables his hands on the side adjacent to me.

"Why does it smell like that?" The three of us smiled, I had went through this earlier with them when I got him. "What?"

Deaton looked to the beta next to me, "Scott said almost the same thing to me a few months ago." He turned to me, holding his hand out, "Setph found it out today herself. One day they could somehow tell the difference between which animals were getting better and which were not."

Isaac looked down at the Dog we'd just giving medicine too. "He's not getting better, is he?" He looked at me sadly, "Like cancer."

I smiled, placing my hand on his as I realized he was talking about his mom. Deaton seemed to noticed this, but kept the conversation as light as he could, looking at his patient instead.

"Osteosarcoma. It has a very distinct scent, doesn't it?" Deaton looked to Isaac, who had this concerned look on his face as he looked at the little animal. Beckoning to him, my boss walked over to my boyfriend, "Come here. I know you're well aware of what your new abilities can do for you. Improved strength, speed, and healing. You ever wonder what it could do for others?" He held out his hand as Isaac looked at me and Scott, "Give me your hand." He waited until we nodded in encouragement and complied, Deaton leading him over to the dog. He then placed Isaac's hand on the puppy's fur, "Go on."

I watched a small smile on my face as he twisted his hand into the dog's fur and his face opened up with a look of wonder as the dog started panting and his veins blackened as he took some of it's pain away. Isaac let go, backing away slowly as he pulled up his shirt to see the darkened viens go up his forearm and then disappear. He looked around at each of the three of us.

"What did I do?" He looked at me last, his voice a whisper and his face a flurry of emotions. _He's still so unsure of himself…._

Scott smiled up at him, "You took some of his pain away."

Deaton looked over at Isaac, who was still holding his hand close to him, and his eyes glassy with surprise. "Only a little bit. But sometimes a little can make quite a difference."

Isaac, looked into his hand, trying to hide away his tears, I smiled, remembering when I had healed Erica. I walked over to him and lifted his face up. Scott looked at us, a smile on his face.

"It's okay." Isaac looked from me to him, "First time he showed me, I cried too."

"And well...I did when I helped Erica...on the full moon….I didn't even know what I was doing until I came and talked to Deaton about it today." I sighed, watching as he gave a tearful laugh, happy that he was able to help someone.

A little while later, I had finished helping Deaton put some files away and I was in the cat kennels, when I heard Scott and Isaac talk while the former was putting medicines away. They were talking about Erica and Boyd, and I felt my blood ice over, freezing me from my spot where I was now taking pain from a small kitten that had tendonitis, his small casts making his paws look like Popeye's arms.

"They're leaving tonight, during the game."

Scott seemed to continue going through the medicines, "So, why are you telling me?"

I pulled away from the kitten, moving so that I could see Isaac. Opening the door towards me, but not going into the room, I saw Isaac was leaning on the table, his arms crossed as he faced Scott. "I'm not telling you. I'm asking you. I'm asking for your advice."

Scott turned to him, "From me? Why?"

Isaac shrugged looking down, "Because I trust you."

"Why?"

He looked steadily, "Because you always seem to want to do the right thing." He looked up, "And you have Steph's trust despite everything and that's not something that is given easily."

I frowned, looking to him confusion coursing through my veins, _I trust you too, you dummy, where are you going with this?_

Scott scoffed, "I usually have no idea what I'm doing. Actually I always have no idea what I'm doing. And as far as Steph goes, that was completely an accident too...but I'm glad she does…"

Isaac laughed slightly, tilting his head, "Hmm. Do you want to let me know what you're doing right now?" He looked up at Scott who had continued working.

Scott shook his head, "I'm not going anywhere if that's what you mean. I have too many people here who need me."

Isaac looked down, after subtly trying to make sure they were alone, "Well, I guess that makes me lucky 'cause uh - 'cause I don't have anyone."

I backed away, my vision blurring as an almost indescribable pain coursed through me. It was almost like I was being burned. It started in my chest and melted its way to my core. _What was __I__ then? Was I nothing to him? Just a way to pass the time? After all the shit we just went through to even __admit__ how 'we' felt, were my fears finally becoming a reality? Was it just a game of his for him to try and find out what it took to earn my trust? What the __hell__ is this? I...I can't….I can't even- _Turning I went through the back door, making my way to the parking lot so I could call Stiles to pick me up, to take me out of there. Instead, I found myself curled against the dumpster as I watched Isaac come out of the clinic a look of shock on his face as he ran to me.

"Steph? Steph!" He grasped my hands from where they were around my knees. "What's wrong, what happened?"

"What you said..." I whispered. "Did you- Did you really mean it?" I looked up at him, the tears finally breaking free. "Are you really that _Stupid"_

"What? No...you can't have...you weren't…." He looked at me trying to find a lie in what I was asking.

"Yea well, check over at the cat kennels next time." I said, my voice devoid of emotion. "But hey...why don't you just run away...it's what we're both good at, right? I should have seen this coming."

"No Steph-" He looked down with a sigh. "You didn't even hear what I said to Scott didn't you?"

"Oh about how hard it was to earn my trust?"

"No...after that about protecting you no matter what your decision is... But also that Jackson is going to be at the game. Steph…" He looked at me a fear in his eyes, "I know I have no right to tell you want to do, but run. Don't go to the game and just...just leave with us! You don't have to be afraid." He tried to reason with me, tried to make me see what he was seeing.

"I can't Isaac….I want to be with you, I do...but you can't give me an ultimatum like that...I can't leave Scott alone to deal with whatever Derek decides to do about the Kanima or about Gerard. I need to help them...I have people here now who-"

"You mean Stilinski?" Isaac pushed away, that old, territorially jealous look on his face.

"Yes! Yes I mean him! But more importantly, I had _You! _I _actually_ was _stupid _enough to have thought we had each other in this!" I pushed him away, "Was all of this just...just-" _a lie? _I pushed the thought back inside, not wanting to hear the answer. I turned and started running. Away from my pain, and away from him, ignoring what it was he yelled out to me.

_If you want to feel like you have no one, fine. But that means you won't have anyone who will listen to your lame ass excuses as to why you would think that._

* * *

_Hey guys, _

_I am really sorry for this ending, but the next chapter will explain why I did it, I promise~! Also, next chapter is the last chapter of this fic! Then I'll be moving on to my sequel that I mentioned in the beginning. As always, review, comment, fave, rant even if you want. Just let me know how I'm doing! _

_Apologetic hugs, _

_~Gwen_


	16. Confessions and Transformations

_Hey guys, so I know that I was kinda evil with the ending of that last chapter, judging by how my roommate gave me a hard time about it, but I promise to make it up to you guys! I have to, right? It's the second to last chapter for season 2~! Though I think I'll add an epilogue to it since it will be shorter and to help transition from this to the season 3 story Which is called __**Double Edged Sword. **__I know it sounds kinda foreboding, but it's really just in a relation to how dark and, well, foreboding the third season is. But anyway, that's all for now, onto the story_

_**Disclaimer: I still don't own Jeff's work, but he still doesn't own mine either.**_

* * *

_Chapter 16: Confessions and Transformations_

I fidgeted on the stands, not sure what I was supposed to do. I hadn't really talked to anyone aside from Stiles and Lydia, surprisingly, since the clinic. They both saw me at separate times during my freak out when I ran away from Isaac, so I kinda just dumped it all on them. I spared a few of the bigger details with Lydia, but she was still really helpful, though it was hard when Lydia hugged me and I stood there, stiff and unsure. I knew that she meant well, but I still only let a spare few touch me, and most of the time, it's only like a brush of arms or something unless it's Isaac. _Though now I guess I'll have to get used to even him not touching me... _I shook my head, watching as Ms. McCall appeared, waving her arm at me, beckoning me over.

I walked up to her, tucking some of the loose strands of my hair behind my ear, "Can I help you, Ms. McCall?"

"Are you like Scott? Are you a-a..." I watched as the older woman faltered, a nervous laugh exiting her lips. "I mean, I'm guessing since you're okay after being shot and everything that you were, but I figured I'd ask."

"It's okay…" I smiled lightly, pulling my jacket tighter around me, "But yea- Yes. I'm a werewolf too."

"Are you here for Scott?" I nodded, and she touched my shoulder lightly, letting go when I once again flinched from someone I knew would never hurt me. She smiled sympathetically, "Come on, Sweetie, lets see if we can try and see him before the game."

We moved to the locker room, not really caring about any of the guys that were giving us strange looks, or the not so subtle glances I was getting. _Oh sure you care, in fact it's making your skin crawl. You just wish that you would see __him__ here. _

I scoffed lightly at my wolf's thoughts, not liking that I gave her the freedom to send them to me, but also feeling more grounded to have her there. _At least I know I'm not alone._

I smiled when we reached the cluster of players and I saw Stiles, and Scott who was on the bench near him. _You aren't...even if you blocked me out...you still have them, even if you don't have __him __Can't you see that? _I smiled knowing she was right and turned to Coach who had started to talk, using a sort of old school radioing device, a bomber jacket on instead of his typical sweatshirt.

"Good morning. In less than an hour, aircraft from here will be joining others from around the world. And you will be launching the largest aerial battle in the history of mankind."

I snorted as Melissa looked around in confusion "What?"

"You have got to be kidding me…" I mumbled, bowing my head slightly to hide my snickering.

Coach continued, since he clearly couldn't hear us anyway, "Mankind - that word should have new meaning for all of us today."

I laughed, in spite of myself as Melissa tapped Stiles' shoulder, "What the hell is he talking about?"

Stiles shook his head, a slightly bemused expression on his face, "He does this every year."

"Seriously?" Melissa and I said, me continuing after stiles whispered 'yeah', "This is classic, why hasn't anyone video taped it?!" I whipped out my new phone, as Coach and the players got into the last part, ignoring the rest of Melissa and Stiles' conversation.

Coach: "We are fighting for our right to live."

Players: Yeah!

Coach: "But as the day the world declared in one voice -We will not go quietly into the night! Today we celebrate our Independence Day!"

Players: Yeah!

I turned off the camera when I felt Melissa tense up next to me. I looked up and froze myself as none other than Gerard entered, patting Coach's shoulder. He moved forward, directing the team as stood in front of us with his arms crossed, "Well spoken, coach. I might have chosen something with a little more historical value, but there's no denying your passion." He had an amused smile on his face as he looked to me and Melissa then to Scott, "And while I haven't been here long, there's no denying my pride in having a winning team for this school. I know you'll all be brilliant tonight, even with only one co - captain leading you." Stiles and I shared a look as Scott had a flash of realization across his face.

"Wait does that mean-" I paused as the geriatric pain in my ass, continued, "Now, I'm your principal, but I'm also a fan. So don't think I'll be content to watch you merely beat this team. Get out there and murder them."

Coach spoke up as Gerard left, "You heard the man. Asses on the field!"

The other players left, Stiles and I standing where we were as Scott tried to talk his way off of the bench. Melissa left, and I wondered when she'd even come into contact with the Argent to be so spooked by him, but pushed it aside as I looked to Stiles.

"So if Scott's benched, that means Jackson is free to attack anyone...but why?"

Stiles shook his head, "I don't know...I'll see if Scott knows. You go in the bleachers. Keep on eye on our parents...and Lydia? If she shows up…"

I nodded and left to sit with them, but turned around as I listened in to Stiles give Scott the speech he me almost verbatim from their spot on the bench.

Stiles was looking at Scott so I sat next to him as he spoke, "We're losing, dude."

I opened my mouth to say something, but was interrupted by Coach, who was leaning on the bench, back in his hoodie. "The hell are you talking about? Game hasn't even started. Now put on your helmet and get out there. You're in for Greenberg."

Stiles looked around shocked, "What? What happened to Greenberg?"

I tensed at the thought of Stiles playing, but couldn't help but laugh at Coach. "What happened to Greenberg?" He pulled up a his hands as if weighing his options, "He sucks. You suck slightly less."

I smirked, "You know in reality you should be taking it as a compliment," Coach shot me a thankful look, Scott smirking and Stiles glaring at me. I just shrugged, 'sorry' I mouthed. _No you're not. _Okay so I wasn't, but just because I was joking around didn't mean I wasn't serious.

Stiles looked at the field a little upset while Scott and I were smiling at the turn of events, "I'm playing? On the field? With the team?"

Coach laughed, bowing his head, "Yes, unless you'd rather play with yourself."

"Why would you-" I started to say, only for Stiles to answer.

"I already did that today," He looked at Scott, "twice." Scott looked down amused while I slapped Stiles upside the head, "Ow! What? It's true. I'm a guy: I have needs!"

Coach rolled his eyes, "Get the hell out there!"

Stiles yelped in surprise and rushed out to the field. I moved over to be next to Scott, "They grow up so fast." I said with a fake sniffle, making Scott laugh only for us to both jolt into reality when Gerard started to speak to Scott.

"Scott, can you hear me?" We both started to look around, "Ah, you can. Good. Then you and your little friend listen closely because the game is about to get interesting." We looked to each other, finally we got a glance of him on the sidelines, playing with his pill box, "Let's put a real clock on this game, Scott. I'll give you until the last 30 seconds. When that scoreboard clock begins counting down from 30, if you haven't given me Derek, then Jackson is gonna kill someone." I looked over at Jackson, nervously, then to all the people in the crowd. _He's going to have someone specific in mind….just who? _Maybe I should have just let him monologue for a bit longer, since he decided to get a little more vague and the asswhole that he is.

"So tell me, Scott, who's gonna die tonight? Should it be your mother, who so bravely came out to support you? Or the sheriff, your best friend's father? Or how about the pretty little redhead who managed to survive the bite of an Alpha?" I watched as Lydia sat next to Melissa, "Or maybe one of these innocent teenagers with their whole life ahead of them?" We looked to Stiles, who was twisting his stick around nervously, and then I felt my blood cheer, "Or maybe even you little friend who has so bravely stuck by you even when she knew of your deal with me? A fact that I'm sure still scares her now."

I bit my lip, knowing that he was just trying to get to me and instead, looked to where the mother, father, and friend of each of my friends were sitting making sure they were still okay. Gerard however, clearly liked the sound of his own voice and just continued talking,

"Or should I do everyone a favor and kill that ridiculous coach? It's up to you, Scott. But you are going to help me take Derek down. Because if you don't - I'll have Jackson rip someone's head off right in the middle of the field and drench everyone you love and care about in blood."

I looked to Scott, my eyes widening in terror, "So basically, he's telling us that this lacrosse game is an ultimate chess match in which we have no idea which piece he's going to attack? And that Derek is the king?"

Scott sighed, shaking his head, "Looks like it, but I know one thing."

"And what's that?" I looked at him and he gazed into the field, a resolute look on his face.

"We aren't going to let him get any of them."

* * *

The game was a trainwreck. Though Jackson hadn't done anything yet, Scott and I were forced to watch Stiles get tackled and thrown down each time he tried to do something, the most recent one with him getting knocked in his helmet's grate, making him jerk backwards. I smiled to myself, _See? They __do __wear cages on their face wait until I tease- _I paused, ignoring how Scott was shoved down onto the bench by coach as the mere subject of my thoughts appeared, pulling his gear on. _I should think about him more often…that was just __too__ convenient._

Isaac sat down on the bench sharing a look with Scott as he went to pull on his cleats, and sending me a smile. _Calm down Steph...really not the time for that stupid heart of yours do that little fluttering act whenever he looks at you that way. I mean seriously, lives are on the line here, stop thinking about how captivating his eyes are for just one second. _

"You came to help." Scott said, a look of pride and relief stretching across his features.

Isaac smirked, "I came to win." He turned to me,"And I was needed to fix something."

I rolled my eyes, thinking back to my speech on the full moon. _Oh come on, you know you love it that he used your words to say he came back for you._

He pulled his other glove on, talking to Scott, "You got a plan yet?"

Scott and I shared a look, "No, right now it's pretty much just keep Jackson from killing anyone."

"Which you know, Gerard is making difficult," I sighed, gesturing to how Scott wasn't on the field.

Isaac nodded, "Well, that might be easier if you're actually in the game. We have to make it so coach has no choice but to play you." He leaned back, looking to Coach. I looked over at the bench where Sean Murphy and John Ramirez, and Greenberg were sitting while Scott spoke up.

"How do we do that? He's got a bench full of guys he can use before he ever puts me on the field."

I looked at Isaac, "Well if there's one thing that Derek taught us...it's taking other people down. Even if he fails to do it himself when it counts."

Scott looked at Isaac nervously, "Can you do it without putting anyone in the hospital?"

Isaac sighed, putting his helmet over his head, "I can try." He ran out to the field, stopping to smirk over at Jackson before getting into position.

When the whistle blew, Isaac just stood waiting for number 42 to walk by him, and checked him with his stick making everyone groan and Coach growl. _Which you have to admit was adorable since you can do it 10X better then him now._

"Lahey!" Isaac didn't even look up, making me shake my head and laugh slightly, "Ramirez! You're in."

Isaac took out another player, "Murphy." Coach waved him onto the field, "You're in." The game continued and Isaac took out another two players, making me put my head on my hands, _he's enjoying this maybe a little too much._ Coach, standing up, "Lahey! Seriously, what the hell is your problem?"

I smiled as Isaac shrugged in a 'sorry not sorry' fashion before going back into line. Before I could properly appreciate the work he was doing right now, he was checked by Jackson. I gasped, forgetting he was even in the field since Gerard hadn't had him make any moves at all. Though now he took of his helmet, walking away with a smug smirk, making Scott and I ran to the field when we realized that Isaac wasn't getting up.

"Isaac!" I knelt down next to him as the EMTs made their way over, "Are you okay? Did he-?

Isaac groaned looking between me and Scott, "It's not broken. But I can't move it. I think Jackson nicked me 'cause I can feel it spreading."

I glared over at Gerard as he spoke up again, "You want to play chess, Scott? Then you better be willing to sacrifice your own pawns."

I stood up, the EMTs pulling Isaac onto a stretcher, "I'll show you, just who's a pawn you decrepid old-"

"Stephanie!" Scott grabbed my arm, making me look at him, calming down and submitting to his glare. Noticing me still stiff in his grip, he let go he muttering, "Just go make sure he's okay. I got things here."

I looked around, "Are you-"

Coach slapped a helmet onto Scott's chest, interrupted my concerns, "McCall. Either you're in or we forfeit."

He paused, nodding to me and I ran off to the locker room, hoping that Scott knew what he was doing.

* * *

When I got there, I found Isaac crawling towards the sinks, unable to move his legs. Gerard stood behind him with two hunters next to him, a broadsword in his hand.

"It was a good effort, Isaac. It was. This would be so much more poetic if it were halftime." He dropped the blade so it scraping against the floor, while he walked towards my mate. _Woah, wait...did I just say that?_

My wolf sighed, rolling her eyes, _Yes you did, now go save his ass you dummy._

I nodded, yelling as I pushed by the hunters and threw my arms around him from where he was leaning against the sink. Isaac wrapped his arms around me, pulling me away slightly. "Steph, what are you doing?"

I smiled, "I'm not going to sit here and watch you die." I pulled away, standing in a defensive stance, "If he wants to kill you, he's going to have to go through _me._" I shifted, so that my eyes glowed and my claws were extended. Gerard laughed which succeeded in increasing my rage.

"What a touching sentiment, my dear girl, but you can't take all three of us on your own."

"Watch me, old man."

I growled, getting ready to duck from Gerrards swing when we both paused. Isaac and I grinned, and Gerard just glared at the mirrors behind us. Scott had showed up and was tossing the other two hunters into the lockers. Seizing my opportunity, I lunged at Gerard only to get sliced by his sword. Pulling way, I ducked forward again, grabbing his legs, but he kicked at my ribs. I stumbled into a standing position, and looked up to see him gone. I worked instead on helping Isaac to stand, knowing that he was already long gone. Cursing under my breath, I hissed as the cut along my forearm started to heal itself, the tissue stitching itself together.

Scott turned to us, looking around frantically, "Where is he?"

I shook my head, "I went to get him, but that Damn broadsword of his, wasn't exactly a butter knife." I snarled flexing my arm, "Damn it! I had him!"

Isaac placed his hands on my shoulders, "Don't worry about it." He looked past me, "Scott, go check the field, we'll catch up."

Scott nodded, running back to the game. I looked up at Isaac, "Why aren't we going with him?"

"Well, my brave little Puffin, if you haven't noticed, I still can't walk." I rolled my eyes at the use of the pet name. " So, I need you to kickstart my healing ability."

I smirked thinking back to one of our earlier days in the substation. Leaning in, I slipped my hand under his jersey, feeling for where his gear was. "As you wish."

And I jerked upward on his ribs, laughing lightly at his stifled yell, ignoring the inner part of me that was feeling his pain with him. _Oh come on! A little physical pain is nothing compared to the emotional stuff he gave me today. He'll get over it, even if it was a bit excessive._

* * *

We ran out onto the field and found a small group clustered around a prone body. Seeing Scott there, Isaac grabbed my arm hand and pulled me up the to where they were. Looking down, I was shocked to see that it was Jackson of all people.

Melissa was kneeling next to him checking his vitals, "He's not breathing. No pulse."

Coach looked to her, "Nothing?"

Melissa shook her head, "Nothing."

Coach muttered 'oh' while Lydia, who I had only just realized was standing there started to freak out, "Oh, my God. There's blood. There's blood."

Scott and I looked down to see his stomach was opened up, his claws gone, but his hand bloodied at his side.

I grabbed at Isaac's arm, as Scott spoke, "Look."

Isaac followed our gazes, "He did it to himself."

"But...why?" I whispered, "Was it him? Or was it Gerard?"

Melissa looked up at Lydia, "Get down here." The poor girl stood frozen in fear, "Get down here and hold his head. Tilt it up." Lydia followed her instructions, but I was jarred away, when the sheriff started to push people around and shout.

"Stiles. Where's Stiles? Where - where's my son?" I looked around, not even realizing he wasn't there.

"Scott." I looked over at him, "I think I know why Jackson was the one to fall…"

We shared a look as the sheriff continued looking around and calling out for his lost son.

* * *

We finished giving our 'statements' to the Sheriff, everyone in the locker room either packing up and changed from the game, or leaving, having already done so. Scott, Isaac and I stood to the side with him, where he was seeing if we knew anything.

He looked to us, folding his notepad up, "I got to meet with the medical examiner and try to figure out what happened with Jackson. I've got an APB out on Stiles. His jeep is still in the parking lot, so that means - the hell, I don't know what that means." He looked down, with a sigh he looked up at us again, "Um - look, if he answers his phone, if he answers his emails, if either one of you see him - "

Isaac spoke from his stance next to me, his hands shoved in his pockets, "We'll call you."

I nodded, "I'm sure he'll come around soon anyway…"

Scott looked at us appreciatively before turning to his best friend's dad, "Look, he's probably just freaked out from all the attention or something. We'll find him."

We broke away, the Sheriff looking at Scott, "Yeah. I'll see you, okay?"

Isaac stood with his hands in his pockets, turning to say something to Scott, but Coach came over and he just settled for moving back to the lockers. I walked over to him, my arm across my chest to hold the other. When I reached him a waved to him.

"Hey," I looked into his eyes, trying to find a way to convey just how much it meant to me that he stayed.

He smiled, leaning against one of the lockers, "Hey, there."

I looked down, smirking as I found out how to tell him. Looking up I tilted my head and held my hand out, palm up, "So, are you new? Because you looked a lot like this guy I used to date"

He tilted his head, "Oh really?"

"Yea," I shrugged, putting my hands in the pack pockets of my jeans as I walked closer to him, "But you can't be him 'cause he skipped town, claiming he didn't have anyone." _Breaking my heart in the process, might I add._

"Well, guy's an idiot," He leaned forward and kissed me, cupping my face with one hand and pulling me closer with the other. I had just placed my hands on his chest when he pulled away, a little too soon for my liking, leaning his forehead against mine, "But, I'd be willing to try and make it up for him?"

I lifted a hand up, cupping his cheek and rubbing my thumb along his cheek, "I think I can be persuaded to let you." _Oh shut up, you've already forgiven him and you __both__ know it._

We smiled, knowing that we were going to be okay. I bit my lip nervously as Coach left, though, starting to worry about Stiles. Isaac took my hands in his, looking into my eyes, "Hey...we'll find him okay?"

I nodded as I pushed away, looking around the locker room Isaac following suit while Scott turned to Stiles' locker, "Is that everyone?"

"I think so." Isaac said, while I checked the other side.

"Yea, we're clear." We turned at the sound of metal screeching in protest, and found Stiles

locker door curled at our feet. Scott was going through it grabbing some of the owner's gear.

"You're gonna track him by scent?"

Scott looked to us, answering Isaac by passing us an object, "Yea, we all are."

Isaac twisted the shoe in his hand while I grimaced at my particular object. _You've gotta be shitting me._ "But how come you get his shirt and I get a shoe?"

"Babe, I wouldn't complain…" I held up my piece, "He gave me his extra jock strap." Isaac glared at Scott, who looked at me apologetically. I rolled my eyes and grabbed his other shoe, tossing the pungent piece of protective wear back into this locker, "Besides, the shoe will have a stronger scent to lock onto." I turned around to see the boys looking at Derek, who was standing with his hands behind his back. I moved next to Isaac, grabbing his hand.

"We need to talk." Behind him a man who clearly had to be related to the alpha walked up, in a similar stance.

"All of us." He smirked over at Scott, who looked surprised as hell to see this man.

"Holy shit." Scott looked angrily at Derek, "What the _hell_ is this?"

Derek moved over, dropping his arms, "You know, I thought the same thing when I saw you talking to Gerard at the Sheriff's station. What about you Steph? Do you really mean to tell me that you _still _trust him over me after that?"

I glared at him, as Scott defended himself, which thankfully made my answer clear, "Okay, hold on. He - he threatened to kill my mom." The two just glared at each other, "And I had to get close to him. What was I supposed to do?"

The mystery man spoke up again, making me finally realize who he was, "I'm gonna go with Scott on this one. Have you seen his mom? She's gorgeous."

Derek, Scott, and I looked over at him, "Shut up."

Derek looked at me confused as the other man just rolled his eyes, clearing not giving a shit.

Isaac meanwhile looked at us all confused, leaning towards Scott, "Who is he?"

"It's Peter Hale…" Scott looked at me, "Stiles told me about him...but I thought that-"

Scott held a hand up at me, turning to Isaac, "Well, like Steph said, that's Peter, Derek's Uncle." He held a hand out towards him, with a noncommittal tone, "Little while back, he tried to kill us all, and then we set him on fire, and Derek slashed his throat." _Yikes….sounds like he shouldn't look that hot then...Not that I was thinking that of course...I mean I am taken after all._

Peter smiled at us and gave a little wave, winking at me, "Hi."

Isaac nodded, pulling me behind him slightly, "That's good to know."

"Can we get back to my confusion now?" I broke away from Isaac, gesturing to Peter. "Like why he's here?"

Scott looked to Derek, "How is he alive?"

Derek stayed still, looking at us with a very business-like attitude, "Look, the short version is he knows how to stop Jackson. And maybe how to save him."

Isaac tilted his head, as I looked down my sadness clearly outward judging by Derek's face, "Well, that's very helpful except Jackson's dead."

The Hale men looked at us hoping we were joking, "What?"

I scoffed, "Really Derek? He wasn't very vague."

Scott nodded, "Yeah, Jackson's dead. It just happened on the field."

Isaac looked at the two men as they shared a worried look, "Okay, why is no one taking this as good news?"

Peter looked off in the distance, trying to explain, "Because if Jackson is dead, it didn't just happen. Gerard wanted it to happen."

"I was afraid of that when I saw him there…" I looked to Scott, "After all that talk of who he was going to have him kill?"

Derek spoke up, saying the question we all needed to answer, "But why?"

Peter tilted his head, "Well, that's exactly what we need to figure out. And something tells me the window of opportunity is closing." He looked at all of us, "Quickly."

* * *

_And that's all for this chapter! I know a lot was happening, that's why I decided to split what I was planning on doing here, since this is getting a bit long for me. I hope you guys like it! Just one more chapter! So thankful to everyone that has been sticking to this and I hope I'm doing it justice! Let me know by hitting the little review button for me, or even just faving if you haven't already! _

_Thanks so much guys! _

_~Gwen_


	17. According to Plan

10

_Okay guys, this is it! The last chapter of the story! I can't believe it's already here...it's one of very few stories that I'll have finished, unfortunately, but hey, it's good and I enjoyed writing it. And I can't wait to work on Season three! Totally gonna sequel it up! Anywhosies...let's get on with it, right?_

_**Disclaimer: I have full rights to my OC, her Story, and my obsession with this show (And Daniel Sharman/Isaac) but I DON'T own anything that belongs to Jeff Davis.**_

* * *

_Chapter 17: According to Plan_

When we reached the Hale house, Scott and I's phones both went off. Looking down I sighed, dropping my head.

**From: Stiles 'little red' Stilinski**

** Hey, I'm alright, just got home. Watch out for Gerard though, he's after you guys.**

Scott looked over at me, clearly getting the same message, his voice mirroring my emotions, "Oh. Oh, they found Stiles." He sighed, glad to know is best friend was okay.

Isaac wrapped an arm around me, as I smiled, relieved enough to not care that the other two didn't seem _to_ care. Derek just followed Peter to the staircase in front of the door, shaking his head at his uncle.

"I told you, I looked everywhere."

Peter counted the steps, sitting down and pulling a briefcase out from the one he wanted, "You didn't look here." He pulled it into his lap as we all watched him.

"What is that, a book?"

Peter looked at Derek like he was an idiot, scoffing, "No. It's a laptop. What century are you living in?" He opened it to reveal a Macbook, "A few days after I got out of the coma, I transferred everything that we had. Fortunately, the Argents aren't the only ones that keep records." He closed the case getting up and going into another room.

Isaac and I went to follow him and Derek, but stopped when Scott picked up his phone. Turning we listened in, "Hey, mom, I can't talk right now."

Melissa's voice rang through the other side sounding frightened beyond belief, _**Oh, yeah? Well, I'm so freaked out that I can barely talk either.**_

"What's wrong?"

_**Something - Definitely something. I don't know what, but I think you're gonna want to see this for yourself**_.

I looked at them as Scott told his mom he was on his way and hung up, "You guys go. I'll stay with the Hale boys...just call me Nancy Drew." I smiled, the humor fading when I looked over at Isaac, "What?"

"I just-I don't want to leave you here with...with _him_," He looked over to Peter, a strange look in his eyes. _He's worried about me...that's so sweet._

I wrapped my arms around Isaac's neck, "If he tries anything, I have Derek here, and you know better than anyone that I can take care of myself."

He pulled me close, resting his forehead on mine, "But I also know how you are around adults you don't know...I just want you to be safe."

"And I will be, I promise." I kissed him quickly, pushing away, "Now go...Scott needs you more than me right now."

I walked into the room, glaring at Peter as I heard them leave the house and run off towards the hospital.

"Ouch...We barely even know each other and you're looking at me like that." He had a look of mock offence, smirking at me, "I don't even know your name."

"It's Stephanie, and if you just keep to yourself, I won't have to know you any better than that." I snapped, knowing I needed to keep him away from me. Something told me if Isaac even smelled him on me, there would be hell to pay.

Peter laughed, looking to his nephew, "woo! I really don't want to be an alpha again. Derek, you didn't tell me you had a pair of mates in your pack of isolated teenagers." _Great so he knows it too...I wonder if there's a sense for it that other Werewolves have. _I rubbed at my neck, the temporary mark long gone, but the idea of it still a constant pressure in my mind.

"That's because they haven't _actually_ mated yet." Derek looked to me, "Where are Scott and Isaac?"

"Melissa called freaking out over something she saw...they went to check it out in case it had something to do with Jackson." Derek nodded, "And FYI? Keep your evasive werewolf senses to a minimum unless you want me to force-feed you a handful of wolfbane."

Peter held his hands up in defeat, "Man...someone's got a sprig of mountain ash up her ass...You might want to have your boyfriend help you with that."

"Maybe you should crawl back in whatever ditch you were buried in and I'll worry about my own ass." I retorted. _Okay, you are laying this on a little thick even for new were-you. Choose your battles wisely. _

Peter opened his mouth to say something, but Derek's phone went off and he went over to his uncle as he answered it. I walked over to the other side of the man, as he scrolled through the computer, his hand resting on his cheek as he elbow was propped on the table.

"They say he's in some kind of transparent casing made from the venom coming out of his claws."

"That sounds sufficiently terrifying."

I nodded, "Yea that's one way to put it…"

Derek looked down at us, "They also say he's starting to move."

Peter stopped scrolling, and directed us to some writing on the screen, "Okay, look, I think I found something. Looks like what we've seen from Jackson is just the kamina's beta shape."

Derek leaned down, "Well, meaning what? It can turn into something bigger?"

Peter scrolled stopping when an image showed up. "Bigger and badder."

We looked at it, Derek speaking before I could, "He's turning into that? That. Has wings."

"I can see that."

"So what you're saying is, the biggest asshole in our school is turning into some sort of demonic butterfly?" I mumbled, trying not to be amused at the idea, since the picture was actually quite horrifying.

Derek fixed me with a look, turning to his phone, "Scott, bring him to us."

_**I'm not sure if we have time for that.**_

Peter turned to me, "Look, somebody actually made an animation of it." He tilted his head, "Maybe it's less frightening if we -" He clicked it, making me and Derek bolt upwards at the terrifying visual and the screech that accompanied it. Peter snapped the laptop shut, "Nope, not at all. We should probably meet them halfway."

"Good idea." I squeaked, as Derek shouted into the phone.

"Scott get him out of there now. Right now!"

We moved to the door, Derek's hand on the handle when Peter spoke up, "Derek, we need Lydia."

_Lydia? What the hell do we need- _Derek interrupted my thoughts, "There's no time-"

"That's the problem. We're rushing. We're moving too fast." Peter moved his hand around in a hurried motion, "And while everybody knows that a moving target is harder to hit, here we are, racing right into Gerard's crosshairs."

"For all we know we could have been doing that all along."

Derek looked at us, his mind made up. "If I get the chance to kill Jackson, I'm taking it."

"So I guess it's back to plan A then…So much for keeping your promise to Scott." I muttered and we headed out into the darkness.

* * *

We made our way to the warehouse, Peter hanging back somewhere, which made me nervous. I looked for Scott and Isaac, but stopped, tensing when I saw one of the black SUVs that the hunters were known to drive. I looked next to me, only for Derek to not be there anymore. _Is he just going to leave me here to be taken? To face Gerard's men alone? Damn it! What kind of alpha __is he__. _I dropped into a defensive crouch, waiting to see what was going to happen. _Let them come, as long as they can help Jackson and Isaac stays safe-_ I gasped as Isaac and Scott stepped out of the car with Chris Argent. I ran over to Isaac, wrapping my arms around him.

"What's going on? Why are you with _him?" _

"He's with us against Gerard...that's really all all we know…" Isaac looked back into the car. "I think he stopped moving."

Chris looked to me, "Where's Derek, Stephanie?"

"He left me as we got here...I think he saw the car and decided to hang back-" I looked past Chris and rolled my eyes. "Or he's coming and wanted to make a more dramatic entrance."

We watched as Derek raced, using his feet and his claws before jumping into a flip and landing in a crouch in front of us. I snorted, making Isaac give me a look, but I merely shrugged as Derek stood up with a glare.

"I'm here for Jackson. Not you."

Derek looked at him steadily, "Somehow, I don't find that very comforting." he tuned to Scott and Isaac, "Get him inside."

We drove the car inside, laying it on the floor, setting Jackson's body bag on the floor. Scott faced Derek, "Where are they?"

Derek looked to either side, "Who?"

"You know, the people you said there was no time for…" I mumbled, realizing that they much have texted or something on the way here.

"Peter and Lydia." Scott watched as Derek opened up the bag, revealing Jackson, "Whoa, hold on a second. You said you knew how to save him."

Derek stood with one leg over each side of the body, "We're past that."

I held my hand over my mouth, looking away from my spot next to Isaac. _God, I thought we were going to be able to save him...is this really our last resort?_

Scott looked at me and then to Derek gain, "What about -"

Derek turned on him, "Think about it, Scott. Gerard controls him now." He gestured to Jackson, "He's turned Jackson into his own personal guard dog. And he set all of this in motion so that Jackson could get even bigger and more powerful."

I bit my lip as Chris spoke up, shaking his head and confirming my fears as Derek turned to him. "No. No, he wouldn't do that. If Jackson's a dog, he's turning rabid, and my father wouldn't let a rabid dog live."

"He is a hunter after all, he's been throwing out their code since he got here…" I said, Isaac looking to me, "It's like Chris said: Jackson was doomed the minute he took the bite: There's no way he can live."

"Of Course not." I jumped back, looking to Gerard as he revealed himself. "Anything that dangerous, that out of control - Is better off dead."

He was alone, but I had a feeling that he was protected. Looking around, I tried to find Allison or any of the other hunters, not knowing just who else's minds he could have twisted into his schemes. Derek didn't seem to care, and instead went to slash through Jackson's throat. We were all met by the sight of Jackson burying a splayed claw into his chest, sitting up and throwing him through the plastic curtain behind us. I stood with my claws out, standing protectively in front of a shell shocked Isaac as Gerard spoke to Scott.

"Well done to the last, Scott. Like the concerned friend you are, you brought Jackson to Derek to save him." He took a few steps forward, making me tense at the possibility of an attack. "You just didn't realize that you were also bringing Derek to me."

Two arrows whistled past Scott, who had ducked out of the way, while I pushed at Isaac, each of us getting clipped in the shoulder. Grunting, we fell, to our backs, Isaac holding onto his chest as I pulled mine out, glaring at the retreating figure, my vision going red.

Scott straightened up in shock, "Allison?"

"A little help here Scott!" I shouted, wincing as I pulled Isaac up. We both took an arm and wrapped it around our shoulders, moving him back to where Derek. "Go get Derek up!" I looked down at Isaac, "Isaac! Isaac, baby are you okay? Are you with me?" He groaned, looking like he was about to pass out, "Isaac, I need you to stay with me, it's really close to your heart, but I have to pull the arrow out. It's the only way you'll heal." I took a hold of the shaft with shaking hands, trying not to make it worse. Gun shots were sounding as Argent tried to hold of Jackson, and I couldn't control the fear that was setting in. _Ohgodohgod! What do I do?! What if I kill him?! This can't be happening, I just got him back…_

I felt a hand take mine, and looked down at Isaac, he nodded slightly, "You can do it, Steph...just-just pull."

I closed my eyes and yanked upward, tears escaping my clenched eyes as he yelled in pain. I tossed it aside, hugging him quickly, before helping him up. We moved back as Chris made his way into the area, Scott was off to the side, but Derek was up and flipping over some crates to go after a fully shifted Kanima. _What no demonic butterfly wings?_ Derek growled from his offensive crouch, making Isaac and I shift, glaring at our foe, Scott following suit. It went after Derek first, blocking his first two hits, but then swiping at his chest and tossing him to the side. Scott when to grab him, but was thrown off and Isaac took the opportunity to wrap his hands around the Kanima's neck. It moved its arms between his and pushed away, grabbing his throat and pushing him into some of the wooden gates that were around us.

I looked up to see Derek on a metal structure, and jump down, onto the Kanima's back pitching it forward only for it to turn around and block hits. He ran forward and ran up a metal sheet, backflipping behind him. I ran over to Isaac, helping him up, since It wasn't really an opportunity to attack. I turned back to see Scott and Derek being thrown down or into a wall. Growling, I leapt onto it's back and started to cut down it's shoulders, jumping back before it could swing back at me. I turned to attack it again, only to see Allison attacking Isaac. Running towards him, I didn't see the Kanima's tail wrapping around my waist. Just Allison tearing at Isaac, and my wolf wasn't taking kindly to it. _Bitch better step away, unless she wants me to take her own arms off with those daggers. _I was lurched back, and into the wall behind Isaac as the Kanima threw me and my head cracked against the floor as I fell, my vision going black.

* * *

I jolted up, Isaac holding me across his lap as Gerard stood with his arm in the air triumphantly. I pulled myself up, looking at the black goo that was seeping from the Bite that he had apparently taken. "What the hell that?!" I gasped as Gerard looked to see everyone starting at him in shock.

"What?" he looked at his hand in shock, he arm pulled down as he glared at Scott, "What is this? What did you do?"

Scott looked over at Derek, "Everyone said Gerard always had a plan. I had a plan too."

I looked over at Gerard, "The pills I switched!" _It all makes sense now...that feeling I had was the same feeling that I got whenever… I touched - _

Gerard crushed the pills, making them cloud in black powder, "Mountain aaaash!"

He stood with the black goo coming out his nose and his eyes, falling to his knees as he started to retch, and choke. I turned into Isaac as he expelled, what I could only assume was whatever cancer was in his body, falling down as the goo pooled in front of him.

I looked back to see Derek look at me in shock then Scott, "Why didn't you tell me?"

Scott looked down at him, "Because you might be an Alpha, but you're not mine."

"I doubt he's anyone's alpha right now…" I mumbled, thinking to how he would have left me to hunters earlier.

Before anyone could respond, Gerard was pulling himself up, yelling to Jackson, "Kill them! . ALL!"

He complied, or was about to, throwing Allison down next to us and getting into a stance for attack. Before any of us could fully react, Stiles came careening in with Lydia in his Jeep. Knocking him down, Isaac and I got up to see Stiles clinging to the steering wheel, his opening as he looked to Scott,

"Did I get him?" Jackson jumped onto the hood of the jeep, making him jump out of the car, "Woah!"

While Stiles ran to Scott, Lydia got out of the jeep and towards Jackson, screaming his name. I moved forward _is she crazy? She's going to get herself killed!_ when Isaac grabbed my arm, pointing to where Scott had just stopped Stiles from doing the same thing. _Who the __hell_ _did that to him?! I swear to god when I find out who did that to him-_I gasped as I watched Lydia hold up a key, making Jackson pause from slicing open her throat. As he stared at it, we all watched as he started to unshift, looking at her in shock. He took the key from her, his eyes back to normal as they looked into each other's eyes. I heard Derek grunting as Jackson backed away, his hand still holding onto the key like it was a sort of life-line. Derek and Peter _where the hell did he come from? _both stabbed into his back and chest. I gasped, turning into Isaac who wrapped his protectively arms around me one hand in hold my head to him. I heard him fall and turned slightly, as Lydia ran to him. Jackson was now in Lydia's arms as they were kneeling on the floor.

Derek held onto Isaac's shoulder, comforting us both as, coughing, Jackson looked into Lydia's eyes, "Do you...Do you still-"

Lydia nodded, "I do. I do still love you. I do, I do still love you. I do. I do. I do still love you, I do." She sobbed, as he slumped into her chest, the key falling to the ground.

"I thought we could save him…" I said, my eyes watering, "I really did."

Isaac rubbed small circles into my back, "At least we got to save him from dying a monster." Lydia laid him down as I nodded, leaning into the comfort that was being given to me and thankful that I had it.

Allison spoke up, making me look up, "Where's Gerard"

We looked around, Chris speaking up, while Lydia slowly stood up, turning away from Jackson.

"He can't be far."

I looked over to Lydia, pulling away from Isaac. I was about to offer her comfort in return for what she gave me earlier today when I saw his claws scratching on the floor. I held my hand to my mouth, smiling as tears trailed down my cheeks.

"Lydia!" She turned around, and we all watched as Jackson stood up, now a werewolf. His crystal blue eyes glowed as he pulled himself back and howled. He shifted back into his human form, looking at Lydia shocked as she ran into his arms and they held onto each other like they were the only two people in the world. Isaac took my hand in his, pulling it to his lips.

"Looks, like we were able to save him after all."

I smiled, still looking at them, "Yea...yea I suppose we did."

* * *

Everything was seemingly back to normal, granted it had only been a day, but Gerard wasn't a threat, the Kanima was no longer chasing us, and Derek had his pack. Though when we went to get Erica and Boyd, they were gone, making Chris think they ran off when he let them go. Part of me hopes that they found somewhere safe, even though we found out the 'pack' they heard was Argent Trickery. Right now I was content in knowing that my friends were safe and that Isaac was still here. He took my hand in his as we walked through the woods. _I swear sometimes that boy is psychic… _We stopped at the Hale house, looking up at the door.

"What is that…" I muttered, looking to some form of angular triskele, I part of me knowing it was far more sinister than our own pack symbol.

Peter spoke up from behind us, "You haven't told them everything yet, have you?"

Isaac and I turned back, while he spoke both of our thoughts, "What do you mean?"

"Yeah, elaborate, Zombie-wolf." I snapped, still not liking the idea of him being around.

Peter turned so he could lean against the tree next to him, "Why do you think Derek was in such a hurry to build his pack? So eager to strengthen his power and his number? When there's a new Alpha," He looked away, facing the woods, "people take notice."

Isaac looked at them, still not sure, _hell __I'm __still not sure, since he's talking in riddles. _"People like who?" He walked up, the porch pointing to the sign on the door, "What is this? What does this mean?"

Derek I looked to Derek who had walked next to me, "It's their symbol. And it means they're coming."

"Who?"

Derek looked up at him and sighed, "Alphas."

"Alphas with an 's'?" I looked over at him, a dread starting to set in, "As in-"

Isaac looked at me, "More than one?"

Derek nodded, "A pack of them."

"An Alpha pack." I turned to Peter who was facing Isaac, "And they're not coming. They're already here."

I bit my lip, turning to Isaac, "When I said that nothing interesting happened on my birthday, this isn't what I had in mind…"

Isaac walked up to me, a small smile on his lips, "Well...whatever it is...We'll get through this. I mean look at what we've already accomplished. As long as we have each other, we can do anything."

I smiled, ignoring Peter's groan of disgust as he and Derek walked into the house, seeing if anything else had happened. "Well...then I guess we have some work to do, don't we?"

I kissed him, knowing that even if we had new dangers to face, and were missing half of our pack, that we could handle whatever was being thrown at us. We found each other in our own hellish lives and fought through our own dangers as well as whatever our Lycanthropy has thrown at us. Through it all, I was able to find him and fix him. And somewhere down the line, he fixed me too.

*The End*

* * *

~Epilogue~

_It was dark, and he was walking up the steps of an old building, the marble railings contrasting cement walls in the pale lighting. Leaning against a wall, a familiar voice rang out, only for the perspective to switch to a staircase up high. He was scared…but determined as he followed Boyd's voice, trying to find his pack mates. He touched the junction of his neck to his shoulder, the slightly scarred tissue keeping him centered. Steph needed him back...but she also needed her Erica back. She'd been going crazy being the only girl in the loft and Lydia's increasing attempts to make her more girly were making her stir crazy. He looked down to see a man with a walking stick of some sort next to a wide door. He was jerked forward by his shirt suddenly, fear coursing through him as a dark skinned woman with long claws on her hand and feet threw him to the floor, and held him down with one foot. Then came two figures moving in sync as they-_

A raw scream ripped through my throat as I pulled at my shirt, trying to close up wounds that weren't there. Tossing and turning in the bed, I was shocked out of it, when Derek ran into the room, pushing me down on the bed as I tore away at the blankets, trying to attack an invisible foe.

"Steph! Stephanie wake up!" I my eyes snapped open with a gasp as I looked into Derek's green eyes. "Stephanie what's going on?"

I panted, looking down at my smooth skin and sat up, holding onto the spot on my neck that marked me as my mate's.

"It's Isaac…Isaacs in trouble."

* * *

_And that's it guys! That's the end! I hope you enjoyed it! I loved writing this and though I find the ending a little cliche and silly, it worked for them! Keep a look out for Double Edged Sword to see the next installment of Steph's journey! I hope that you weren't too mad about my epilogue/prologue into Doubled Edged Sword! :P_

_Love you all and thank you so so much for staying with me through all of this! _

_~Gwen_


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